tihravy  of  Che  trheological  ^tminaxy 

PRINCETON  •  NEW  JERSEY 


FrcHi  the  Library  of 

Prof.  B.B.  Warfield 
1923 


BX6495.S7  S4  1892 

Shindler,  Robert. 

From  the  usher's  desk  to  the 

tabernacle  pulpit;  the  liffa 

nd  labors 

OF  Charles  Haddon  Spurgeon^ 


t^rom  the  Usher  s  Desk 


to 

The   Tabernacle  Pulpit 


THE  LIFE   AXD   LABORS 

CHARLES   HADDON   SPURGEON 


By    rev.  ROBERT   SHINDLER 

AUTHOR   OF   "XORTHERAM   HALL,"    ETC. 


A.    C.    ARMSTRONG    AND    SON 

51  E4ST  lO""  Street,  near  Broadway 

1892 

All  Rights  Reserved 


Copyright,  1892, 
By  a.  C.  Armstrong  and  Son. 


(9[ui\)cvsttg  ^3vfss: 
John  Wilson  and  Son,  Cambridge. 


PKEFACE. 


"  'THHIS  people  have  I  formed  for  Myself ;  they 
X  shall  show  forth  My  praise,"  is  Jehovah's 
declaration  concerning  His  people  Israel.  It  has 
been  wonderfully  fulfdled  in  the  history  of  that  peo- 
ple from  their  beginnhig.  The  world  owes  much  to 
God's  ancient  people,  the  Jews  ;  more,  indeed,  than  to 
any  nation,  people,  or  race.  But  if  the  words  have 
been  fulfilled  in  the  history  of  Israel  as  a  people,  they 
have  been  even  more  eminently  true  of  the  fathers 
and  leaders  of  that  people.  Among  the  former,  we 
must  rank  Abraham,  Joseph,  and  Moses  ;  and  among 
the  latter,  Joshua,  Samuel,  and  David.  All  these 
men  were  exceptional  in  their  personality,  character, 
and  work.  No  two  of  tliem  were  in  all  things  alike, 
and  no  one  of  them  could  have  done  the  work  of  any 
one  of  the  rest.  The  like  is  true  in  relation  to  the 
Christian  Church.  In  even  a  more  real  and  exalted 
sense,  the  Church  of  Christ  is  God's  workmanship, 
God's  building ;  and  the  Divine  handiwork  may  be 
seen,  more  or  less  conspicuously,  in  all  its  human 


vi  Preface. 

• 

founders  and  leaders.  In  proof  of  this,  we  need  only 
mention  the  names  of  the  apostle  Paul,  of  the  great 
Augustine  of  Hippo,  of  Wycliffe,  of  Luther,  of  Calvin, 
and  in  later  times,  of  Whitefield  and  Wesley,  and 
in  our  own  day,  of  the  apostolic  Charles  Haddon 
Spurgeon.  And  as  we  may  truly  say  of  the  above- 
named  worthies  who  have  gone  to  their  rest  and 
reward,  that  they  were,  in  a  very  high  and  eminent 
sense,  God-made  men,  so  may  we  truly  affirm  of  the 
last-mentioned,  whose  name  is  now  a  household  word 
throughout  the  whole  world. 

The  writer's  personal  knowledge  of  Mr.  Spurgeon 
dates  back  to  the  year  1855,  the  year  after  his  settle- 
ment in  London.  Since  that  time  the  often-mistaken 
public  have  proclaimed  we  cannot  tell  how  many 
Spurgeons.  There  have  been  many  second  Spurgeons, 
besides  Scotch  Spurgeons,  Welsh  Spurgeons,  and 
American  Spurgeons.  And  yet,  after  all,  there  is 
but  one  Spurgeon  ;  thoua-h  we  shall  have  to  make 
honorable  reference  to  at  least  four  or  five  genera- 
tions of  Spurgeons. 

The  student  of  history,  and  even  the  ordinary 
reader,  does  not  need  to  be  told  that  all  the  great 
leaders  of  the  Church  have  been  men  unique  in  their 
personal  and  other  characteristics,  —  men  who  were 
divinely  fitted  for  their  work,  and  divineh^  aided  and 
sustained  in  its  performance,  doing  that  which  no 
other  men  could  have  done,  or  done  so  well.  What 
other  man  could  have  done  the  work  of  the  apostle 
Paul,  or  of  Augustine,  or  Luther,  or  Calvin  ?  And 
wliat  man  is  there  who  could  have  done  the  w^ork  Mr. 


Preface,  vii 

Spurgeoii  has  done  ?  It  is  on  every  side  abundantly 
evident  that  he  is  God's  man  ;  that  God  has  made 
him  what  he  is,  and  done  all  for  His  own  glory,  and 
for  the  o'ood  of  the  Church  and  the  world. 

If  we  look  at  David  in  his  early  life,  we  see  him 
the  fair  and  ruddy  son  of  a  Bethlehem  farmer, 
occupied  with  the  care  of  his  father's  sheep.  But 
God  took  liim  from  the  sheep-folds,  and  made  him 
one  of  the  greatest  of  kings  ;  a  prince  among  poets^ 
prophets,  and  seers ;  one  of  the  mighty  men  of 
valor,  and  yet  more,  one  of  the  strongest  of  believers, 
and  one  of  the  greatest  of  saints.  The  early  days  of 
Mr.  Spurgeon  gave  indications  of  more  than  average 
capacity  and  energy,  penetration  and  mental  ])ower, 
but  there  were  no  certain  foreshadowings  of  his  future 
greatness.  And  even  when  he  had  become  popular, 
there  was  no  one  who  could  have  predicted  the  wide 
and  varied  usefulness  or  the  multifarious  labors  to 
which  he  has  attained. 

In  the  hall  at  "  Westwood  "  there  hangs  a  picture 
of  considerable  size,  containing  the  portraits  of  one 
hundred  and  ninety-two  men  of  mark,  almost  ex- 
clusively divines  of  the  Protestant  Church,  in  the 
centre  of  which  is  a  larger  portrait,  that  of  Mr. 
Spurgeon  when  about  twenty-four  or  twenty-five, 
and  when  hardly  tlie  promise  of  a  beard  adorned 
his  face.  The  portraits  were  pieced  together  in  a 
very  neat  and  ingenious  manner  by  the  Rev.  Joseph 
Mountford,  then  of  Sevenoaks,  and  afterwards  of 
Leighton  Buzzard,  where  he  died  in  1867,  the  funeral 
being  conducted  and  the  funeral  sermon  preached  by 


viii  Preface. 

the  present  writer,  one  of  his  closest  and  firmest 
friends.  Mr.  Moiintford  presented  the  picture  to  Mr. 
Spurgeon,  and  it  was  photographed  and  sold  for  the 
benefit  of  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle  Fund,  when 
the  building  was  in  course  of  erection.  In  the 
picture  Mr.  Spurgeon  stands  in  the  attitude  in  which 
he  was  commonly  represented  at  that  time,  the  right 
arm  raised,  and  the  fore-finger  of  the  right  hand 
pointing  upwards.  (See  portrait  on  page  87  of  the 
present  volume.)  It  might  have  seemed  to  some  too 
great  an  honor  conferred  on  the  young  pastor  to 
place  him  so  conspicuously  among  the  learned  doctors 
and  great  divines  of  the  Puritan  and  later  times ;  but 
his  subsequent  career  has  fully  justified  the  honor 
then  conferred  upon  him.  He  has  eclipsed  in  popu- 
larity and  usefulness  the  greatest  of  them  all,  though 
no  one  could  have  dreamed  at  that  time  to  what  vast 
dimensions  his  influence,  his  fame,  and  his  varied  and 
marvellous  usefulness  would  extend.  But  all  are 
accounted  for  by  the  divine  declaration,  specially 
applicable  to  God's  ministerial  servants,  tliat  they  are 
formed  for  Himself,  and  that  they  shall  show  forth 
His  praise. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  PAGE 

I.    Mr.  Spdrgeon's  Ancestry 1 

II.    Mr.  Spurgbon's  Grandfather 4 

III.  C.  H.  Spurgeon's  Father  and  Mother      ....  19 

IV.  Birth  and  Early  Life  of  Mr.  Spurgeon     ...  22 
V.    Mr.  Spurgeon's  Conversion  and  Baptism     ...  34 

VI.    Mr.  Spurgeon's  First  Sermon 51 

VII.    Mr.  Spurgeon's  Proposed  College  Training  .     .  57 

VIII.    Mr.  Spurgeon's  Call  to  London 62 

IX.    The  Church  at  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle  71 

X.    Early  Years  of  Mr.  Spurgeon's  Pastorate    .     .  85 

XI.    The  Metropolitan  Tabernacle 109 

XII.    The  Pastor's  College 129 

XIII.  The  Society  of  Evangelists 151 

XIV.  The  Stockwell  Orphanage 164 

XV.    Mrs.  Spurgeon's  Book  Fund 18& 

XVI.    Mr.  Spurgeon's  Jubilee 202 

XVII.    Mr.  Spurgeon  as  a  Preacher  and  Author  .     .    .  240 

XVIII.    Mr.  Spurgeon  as  a  Hymn  Writer 256 

XIX.    Various  Agencies  in  connection  with  the  Tab- 
ernacle Church 265 

XX.    The  "Down-grade"  Controversy 270 

XXI.    Mr.  Spurgeon  at  Home 275 

XXII.    Mr.  Spurgeon's  Long  Illness 283 

XXIII.  Mr.  Spurgeon  at  Mentone 297 

XXIV.  Conclusion 303 

XXV.    Mr.  Spurgeon's  Translation 305 

Index 313 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PAGE 

Rev,  James  Spiirgeon 5 

The  Old  Manse  and  Meeting-house,  Stambourne 13 

Mrs.  James  Spurgeon IG 

Rev.  John  Spurgeon 21 

Mrs.  John  Spurgeon 21 

IMr.  Spurgeon's  Birthplace 23 

Kev.  Richard  Knill 26 

The  Arbor  in  its  Present  Condition 29 

Isleham  Ferry  —  Baptizing  Place 43 

Cottage  at  Tevershani,  where  Mr.   Spurgeon  First  Preached     ...  53 

The  Old  Chapel  at  Waterbeach 55 

New  Park  Street  Chapel 63 

Benjamin  Keach 72 

Benjamin  Keach  in  the  Pillory 73 

Rev.  John  Gill 77 

Dr.  Gill's  Pulpit 79 

Carter  Lane  Chapel 80 

John  Rippon 81 

C.  H.  Spurgeon  (1857) 87 

"Brimstone  and  Treacle" 92 

*'Catch-'em-Alive-0!" 93 

Music  Hall,  Surrey  Gardens — Exterior 95 

Music  Hall,  Surrey  Gardens  —  Interior 99 

Surrey  Gardens  Memorial  Hall 107 

The  Metropolitan  Tabernacle — Exterior Ill 

The  Metropolitan  Tabernacle  —  Interior 115 

The  Pastors'  College 133 


xii  Illustrations. 

PAGE 

Rev.  George  Rogers ~  .     .     .     .  135 

J.  A.  Spurgeou 144 

Charles  Spurgeon 147 

Thomas  Spurgeon ...  147 

W.  Y.  Fullerton 153 

J.  Manton  Smith .153 

Tulloch  Memorial  Hospital,  Tangier 159 

Bird's-eye  View  of  Stockwell  Orphanage 164 

Entrance  to  Stockwell  Orphanage 172 

Your  Heavenly  Father  feedeth  them 173 

The  Boys'  Side  of  the  Orphanage 174 

The  Girls'  Side  of  the  Orphanage 176 

The  Orphanage  Infirmary 178 

Mr.  Spurgeon  amid  the  Boys  at  the  Orphanage 180 

V.  J.  Charlesworth 187 

Mrs.  C.  H.  Spurgeon 189 

The  Lemon  Plant 191 

The  Man  at  the  Pump 198 

Metropolitan  Tabernacle  Almshouses 267 

Helensburgh  House 275 

New  Park  Street  Chapel  Staircase 277 

The  Lawn,  Helensburgh  House 278 

Entrance  to  "  Westwood  " 279 

Lawn  at  "Westwood" 280 

Mr.  Spurgeon's  Study 282 

Fac-siniile  Letter 290 

Hotel  Beau  Rivage,  Meutone 298 


LIFE   AND    LABORS 


OF 


PASTOR  C.  H.  SPURGEON. 


CHAPTER  I. 


MR.  SPURGEON'S  ancestry. 

No  life  of  Mr.  Spurgeon  would  be  complete  if  it 
did  not  contain  some  account  of  his  godly  an- 
cestors. There  was  much  in  the  piety  and  con- 
scientiousness of  those  who  came  before  him  which 
Avill  help  to  account  for  his  sturdy  Christian  character 
and  unparalleled  success.  As  the  name  Spurgeon 
imports,  it  is  Continental  rather  than  Anghcan. 
It  can  be  traced  back  for  about  three  hundred 
years. 

When  Ferdinand  Alvarez,  Duke  of  Alva,  died,  in 
1589,  his  wicked  boast,  that  he  had  sent  to  the 
executioners  no  less  than  eighteen  thousand  persons, 
was  not  forgotten.  That  number  represented  the 
actual  martyrs  to  the  faith  ;  but,  besides  these,  there 


2  Life  and  Labors  of 

were  very  many  thousands  who  had  been  driven 
into  exile,  large  numbers  of  whom  found  a  home  in 
England.  Among  these  were  the  progenitors  of 
the  English  Spurgeons,  who  found  a  shelter  and 
resting-place  in  East  Anglia,  some  settling  in  Essex, 
and  others  in  Norfolk.  These  Dutch  Christians 
brought  their  useful  arts  with  them,  and,  like  the 
Huguenots  from  France,  at  a  later  date,  greatly 
aided  in  laying  the  foundations  of  those  various  in- 
dustries which  have  ministered  to  the  strength  and 
wealth  and  prosperity  of  England.  The  ancestors 
of  Mr.  Spurgeon  were  distinguished  alike  for  their 
quiet  energy,  their  business  capabilities,  and,  best  of 
all,  their  true  godliness  and  exemplary  piety.  They 
made  themselves  friends  among  their  English  neigh- 
bours, and  left  their  mark  upon  society.  Everywhere 
they  were  industrious,  honorable,  and  pious  people. 
It  is  not  difficult  to  see,  even  in  Mr.  Spurgeon's 
physique,  a  resemblance  to  the  godly  Dutchman, 
while  in  other  respects  he  has  proved  himself  a 
worthy  son  of  the  noble  sires  who,  driven  from  their 
homes  by  cruel  persecutions,  carried  with  them  the 
faith  that  was  dearer  to  them  than  life  itself. 

One  of  the  Essex  branch  of  the  family.  Job 
Spurgeon,  was  a  prisoner  in  Chelmsford  jail  at  the 
time  John  Bunyan  was  lying  in  Bedford  jail,  and 
for  the  same  cause, — faitliful  adherence  to  his  con- 
scientious convictions.  For  fifteen  weeks,  in  bitterly 
severe  weather,  he  lay  on  a  pallet  of  straw  without 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  S 

any  fire.  His  descendant  has  an  easier  lot  out- 
wardly, but  he  is  not  lacking  in  the  same  spirit  of 
Christian  heroism,  and  he  also  has  had  his  share  of 
suffering  for  the  truth's  sake,  both  in  the  fierce  ordeal 
through  which  he  had  to  pass  in  the  early  years  of 
his  ministry  in  London,  and  in  his  continued  conten- 
tion for  "  the  faith  once  for  all  delivered  to  the 
saints." 

It  is  related  that,  quite  early  in  his  career  in 
London,  Mr.  C.  H.  Spurgeon  was  introduced,  in  a 
bookseller's  shop  in  Paternoster  Row,  to  a  Mr.  John 
Spurgeon,  a  descendant  of  the  Norfolk  branch  of  the 
family.  On  comparing  notes  of  their  respective  an- 
cestors, the  same  piety,  uprightness,  and  loyalty  to 
the  truth  were  found  to  have  characterized  them  on 
both  sides. 

The  great-grandfather  of  Mr.  Spurgeon  was  a  man 
of  true  Puritan  type,  and  his  wife  was  akin  to  him 
in  mind,  principles,  and  life.  She  took  a  deep  inter- 
est in  the  spiritual  welfare  of  their  children,  and  both 
parents  ordered  their  house  faithfullv  accordino; 
to  the  Word  and  will  of  God.  They  were  con- 
temporary with  the  earlier  years  of  the  reign  of 
George  IIL  From  them  we  trace  an  unbroken  line 
of  faithful  ministers  of  the  Word,  including  four 
generations. 


CHAPTER  11. 


C.  H.  SPURGEON  S  GRANDFATHER. 


JAMES  SPURGEOX  was  a  son  of  the  godly  couple 
mentioned  on  the  previous  page,  and  was  born 
at  Halstead,  Essex,  29th  September,  1776.  As  a 
boy  he  was  seriously  inclined,  and  while  still  a  youth 
he  joined  the  Independent  Church  at  Halstead.  He 
was  apprenticed  at  Coggeshall,  in  the  same  county, 
and  there  enjo3'ed  the  privilege  of  the  pastoral  over- 
sight of  the  Rev.  S.  Fielding.  Up  to  the  age  of 
twenty-six  he  followed  business  pursuits,  when  his 
mind  was  directed  to  the  work  of  the  gospel  ministry. 
He  entered  Hoxton  Academy  in  1802.  After  a  course 
of  two  years'  study,  he  responded  to  an  invitation  to 
endeavor  to  raise  the  decayed  Independent  cause  at 
Clare,  Suffolk.  His  success  warranted  his  ordination 
to  the  pastorate,  and  the  church  continued  to  prosper 
under  his  care.  Stambourne,  Essex,  was  his  next 
and  final  sphere. 

The  Independent  Church  in  this  village  had  been 
distinguished  for  unbroken  peace  and  unity,  so  that 
for  nearly  one  hundred  and  fifty  years  there  had  been 


Life  of  Pastor  C.  H.  Spurge  on.  5 

but  three  pastors.  The  death  of  the  venerable  Mr. 
Becldow  ill  1810,  left  a  vacancy,  which  James  Spur- 
geon  was  requested  to  fill.     He  accepted  the  unani- 


REV.  JAMES    SPURGEOX. 

mous  call  of  the  church,  and  lived  and  labored  at 
Stambourne  for  fifty-four  years,  enjoying  unbroken 
harmony  and  more  or  less  of  prosperity.     When  morc 


6  Life  and  Labors  of 

than  fourscore  years  of  age  he  often  remarked,  "  I 
have  not  had  one  hour's  unhappiness  with  my  church 
since  I  have  been  over  it."  Invitations  from  other 
churches  were  addressed  to  him,  but  the  love  and 
unity  that  prevailed  at  Stambourne  decided  him  to 
decline  them  all.  When  some  of  his  friends  advised 
him  to  retire  from  the  pastorate  at  eighty  years  of 
age,  he  replied,  "  No !  God  has  blessed  me  ;  and  I  see 
that '  at  evening  time  it  shall  be  light,^  "  —  alluding  to  a 
sermon  from  that  text  by  his  grandson  which  was 
a  great  favorite  with  him.  Soon  after  this  there  was 
a  blessed  revival  of  the  work  of  God  in  the  villao-e 
and  neighborhood,  and  several  young  people  joined 
the  church  at  Stambourne.  Frequent  prayer- meet- 
ings were  held,  and  much  good  was  done,  so  that  the 
good  old  pastor  was  led  to  say  ;  "  I  will  never  give  up 
so  long  as  God  inclines  people  to  come,  and  souls  are 
saved.'' 

Some  interesting  anecdotes  of  his  grandfather  have 
been  recorded  by  Mr.  Spurgeon  in  '•  The  Sword  and 
the  Trowel,"  and  others  may  be  found  in  his  printed 
sermons.     Here  is  one,  entitled  — 

UNDER   THE   OAK   TREE. 

While  a  youth,  under  conviction  of  sin,  he  fre- 
quently repaired  to  a  wood  in  Honey  wood  Park, 
where,  especially  under  a  certain  oak,  then  only  a 
sapling,  he  wept  and  groaned  before  the  Lord,  and 
where,  also,  he  received  the  gift  of  faith  to  believe 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  7 

on  the  Lord  Jesus,  and  enter  upon  the  enjoyment  of 
peace  with  God.  It  was  a  lonely  spot,  but  it  was 
to  him  a  Bethel,  the  house  of  God  and  the  gate  of 
heaven.  He  often  resorted  thither  for  meditation, 
prayer,  and  praise. 

"  Some  time  after  this  happy  event,"  writes  the 
grandson,  "having  to  go  from  Coggeshall  to  Hal- 
stead,  his  route  lay  near  the  hallowed  spot.  On  the 
night  previous  he  dreamed  very  vividly  that  Satan 
appeared  to  him,  and  threatened  to  tear  him  in 
pieces  if  he  dared  to  go  along  that  footpath,  and 
pray  under  the  oak  as  he  had  been  wont  to  do. 
The  Evil  One  reminded  him  that  there  was  another 
way  through  the  farmyard,  and  that  if  he  took  the 
farmyard  path  all  would  go  well  with  him.  When 
my  grandfather  awoke,  the  impression  on  his  mind 
was  overpowering,  and  he  reasoned  thus  with  him- 
self :  '  Whether  it  be  a  dream  or  really  a  temptation 
from  Satan  I  cannot  tell,  but  anyhow  I  will  not  yield 
to  it,  but  will  show  the  Devil  that  I  will  not  do  his 
bidding  in  anything,  but  will  defy  him  to  his  face.' 
This  was  the  good  man  all  over.  Like  Luther,  he 
had  a  vivid  impression  of  the  reality  and  personality 
of  the  great  Enemy,  and  was  accustomed  to  make 
short  work  with  his  suggestions. 

"  One  day,  when  in  the  pulpit,  it  came  into  his  head 
that  the  place  where  the  sand  was  kept  for  sanding 
the  brick  floor  of  his  manse  ought  to  be  boarded  in. 
His  next  thought  was,  what  business  had  Satan  to 


8  Life  and  Labors  of 

make  me  think  about  the  sand-closet  on  a  Sunday, 
and  in  the  pulpit,  too  ?  It  shall  not  be  boarded  at 
all.  I  will  let  him  see  that  he  shall  not  have  his 
way  with  me. 

"  But  to  return  to  the  story  of  the  oak-tree.  My 
grandfather,  then  a  young  man,  went  on  cheerily 
enough  till  he  came  to  the  stile  where  the  two  paths 
diverged ;  then  a  horrible  fear  came  upon  him,  and 
he  felt  his  heart  beat  fast.  Suppose  he  really  should 
meet  the  Arch  fiend,  and  should  find  him  too  strong 
for  him,  what  then  ?  Better  take  the  farmyard  path. 
No,  that  would  be  yielding  to  Satan,  and  he  would 
not  do  that  for  ten  thousand  worlds.  He  plucked  up 
courage,  and  tremblingly  went  on.  The  stile  was 
leaped,  the  narrow  track  through  the  wood  was  trod- 
den with  resolution  mingled  with  forebodings.  The 
oak  was  in  sight,  the  sweat  was  on  his  face,  the  pace 
was  quickened,  a  dash  was  made,  and  the  tree  was 
grasped,  and  there  was  no  Satan  there.  Taking 
breath  a  moment,  the  young  man  uttered  aloud  the 
exclamation,  '  Ah,  cowardly  Devil  !  you  threatened 
to  tear  me  in  pieces,  and  now  you  do  not  dare  to 
show  your  face.'  Then  followed  a  fervent  prayer 
and  a  song  of  praise,  and  the  young  man  was  about  to 
go  on  his  way,  when  his  eye  was  caught  by  something 
shining  on  the  ground.  It  was  a  ring,  a  very  large 
ring,  he  told  me,  nearly  as  large  as  a  curtain  ring, 
and  it  was  solid  gold.  How  it  came  there  it  would 
be  hard  to  guess.     Inquiries  were  made,  but  no  claim- 


Pastor   C,  H.  Spurgeon.  9 

ant  ever  appeared,  and  my  grandfather  had  it  made 
into  my  grandmother's  wedding-ring,  in  memory  of 
the  spot  so  dear  to  him. 

"  Year  by  year  he  continued  to  visit  the  oak-tree  on 
the  anniversary  of  the  day  of  his  conversion,  to  pour 
out  his  soul  before  the  Lord.  The  sapling  had  spread 
abroad  its  branches,  and  the  man  had  become  the 
parent  of  a  numerous  family,  but  the  song  of  grati- 
tude was  hot  forgotten,  nor  the  prayer  that  he  and 
his  offspring  might  forever  be  the  Lord's.  The 
angels  of  God,  we  doubt  not,  watched  those  con- 
secrated seasons  with  delightful  interest. 

"  To  add  to  the  solemnity  of  the  secluded  wood, 
his  father,  while  passing  by  the  spot,  was  touched 
by  the  hand  of  God,  and  suddenly  fell  dead.  He 
could  then  feel  e^•en  more  deeply,  '  How  awful  is  this 
place  ! '  This  made  the  annual  visitations  to  the  tree 
more  deeply  impressive,  and  we  believe  beneficial. 
They  would  have  been  continued  till  my  grand- 
father's last  year,  were  it  not  that  the  hand  of 
modern  improvement  ruthlessly  swept  away  tree 
and  wood,  and  every  relic  of  the  past.  His  last 
prayer  on  the  dear  spot  was  most  ludicrously  in- 
terrupted. As  the  wood  was  almost  all  felled,  he 
judged  by  the  pathway  as  nearly  as  possible  where 
the  long-remembered  oak  had  stood ;  the  place  was 
covered  with  growing  wheat,  but  he  kneeled  down 
in  it,  and  began  to  bless  the  name  of  the  Lord,  when 
suddenly  he  heard  a  rough  voice  from  over  the  hedge 


10  Life  and  Labors  of 

crying  out,  '  Maister,  there  be  a  creazy  man  a  saying 
his  prayers  down  in  the  wheat  over  thay're.*  This 
startled  the  suppliant,  and  made  him  beat  a  hasty 
retreat.  Jacob  must  wrestle  somewhere  else ;  the 
man  of  God  looked  at  the  spot,  and  went  his  way, 
but  in  spirit  he  still  raised  an  altar  in  that  Bethel, 
and  praised  the  God  of  his  salvation. 

"  He  has  gone  to  his  rest  after  having  fought  a 
good  fight,  but  the  prayers  of  Honeywood  Park  are 
blessing  his  children,  and  his  children's  children  to 
the  third  generation  at  this  very  hour.  To  them 
and  all  the  world  his  testimony  is, '  Resist  the  Devil, 
and  he  will  flee  from  you ; '  and  equally  does  he 
instruct  us  to  '  Bless  the  Lord,  and  forget  not  all 
His  benefits.'  " 

One  or  two  other  anecdotes  may  here  be  given  of 
the  venerable  pastor.  The  first  illustrates  his  upright- 
ness and  conscientiousness  in  things  about  which  many 
professing  Christians  are  not  always  straight.  When 
in  middle  life  he  intended  to  exercise  his  right  as  a 
voter  for  the  county  at  the  general  election,  but  his 
qualification  was  disputed.  The  reason  assigned  was 
that  all  the  trustees  of  the  manse  and  land  were 
dead.  He  was  advised  that,  as  he  had  had  undisputed 
possession  for  more  than  twenty-one  years,  he  should 
go  home,  make  his  will,  and  leave  the  property  to  his 
children,  as  it  had  become  legally  his.  This  tempt- 
ing proposal,  however,  he  refused,  and  at  once  called 


Pastor  C.  H.  Sinirgeon.  11 

a  meeting  of  the  church-members  and  subscribers, 
and  put  the  entire  property  in  trust,  according  to  the 
will  and  intentions  of  the  donor.  As  he  had  a  large 
family,  and  was  really  poor,  this  was  a  great  triumph 
of  principle  over  interest. 

An  anecdote  is  related  of  the  old  gentleman,  which 
illustrates  alike  his  faith  in  divine  providence,  and 
God's  faithfulness  to  him  in  a  trying  exigency.  The 
large  family  and  the  small  income  of  the  pastor  made 
it  difficult  to  get  along  in  the  world ;  but  he  loved  his 
Master,  and  he  loved  his  work,  and  on  no  account 
would  he  give  up  the  ministry  for  a  more  remunera- 
tive profession :  so  he  tried  to  help  his  income  by  the 
cultivation  of  a  few  acres  of  ground,  keeping  a  cow 
to  supply  the  family  with  milk.  One  day,  when  he 
went  to  the  cow,  she  fell  back  with  the  staggers,  and 
died.  '-  James,"  said  Mrs.  Spurgeon  to  her  husband, 
"  how  will  God  provide  for  the  dear  children  now  ? 
What  shall  we  do  for  milk?"  "Mother,"  said  he, 
"  God  has  said  that  He  will  provide,  and  I  believe 
that  He  could  send  us  fifty  cows  if  He  pleased." 

It  happened  that  on  that  very  day  a  numljer  of 
gentlemen  were  assembled  for  a  certain  purpose  in 
London,  some  of  whom  were  known  to  the  pastor  of 
Stambourne ;  they  were  sitting  as  a  committee  for 
the  distribution  of  money  to  poor  ministers,  and  they 
had  given  something  to  all  who  had  asked  for  help. 
Old  Mr.  Spurgeon  had  never  asked  for  any ;  he  pre- 
ferred, by  rigid  economy,  and  labor  on  his  land,  to 


12  Life  of  Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon. 

meet  his  requirements  without  appealing  to  others. 
When  all  the  cases  had  been  dealt  with  there  remained 
a  balance  of  £5.     What  should  they  do  with  it  ? 

"Well,"  said  one,  "there  is  a  Mr.  Spurgeon  down 
at  Stambourne,  in  Essex,  a  poor  minister,  who  needs 
some  help." 

"Oh,"  said  another,  "don't  send  him  <£5;  I  will 
put  £b  to  it ;  I  know  him ;  he  is  a  worthy  man." 

"No,"  said  another,  "don't  send  him  <£10.  I  will 
give  «£5,  if  some  one  else  will  add  another  X5,  and 
make  it  £20." 

The  next  morning  Mr.  Spurgeon  received  a  letter 
for  which  there  was  ninepence  to  fay.  The  old  lady 
begrudged  ninepence  for  a  letter,  but  when  it  was 
opened,  it  was  found  to  contain  X20.  Her  husband, 
on  seeing  the  money,  remarked  to  his  wife,  "  Now, 
can't  you  trust  God  about  an  old  cow  ?  " 

In  relating  this  anecdote,  his  distinguished  grand- 
son remarked :  — 

"  I  think  of  my  dear  old  grandfather,  and  of  what 
he  used  to  say  to  me.  If  he  were  here  to-night,  —  I 
am  glad  he  is  not,  because  he  is  in  heaven,  and  that 
is  a  much  better  place  for  him,  —  but  if  he  could  come 
from  heaven,  and  could  talk  as  he  used  to  do  when 
he  was  here  on  earth,  he  would  say,  '  Ah,  my  boy,  I 
did  find  him  a  faithful  God.' " 

Old  James  Spurgeon  was  very  popular  with  the 
people  in  Essex,  where  he  was  widely  known,  being 
frequently  asked  to  preach  on  special  occasions,  such 


14  Life  and  Labors  of 

as  anniversary  seasons.  His  own  chapel  was  of 
considerable  size,  and  on  the  Sabbath  afternoons  it 
was  well  filled,  the  farmers  for  many  miles  around 
driving  in  for  the  services.  A  long  range  of  stables 
was  connected  with  the  chapel  for  the  convenience 
of  such  of  the  congregation  as  required  it  for  their 
horses. 

When  the  venerable  grand  sire  was  eighty,  his 
grandson  was  on  a  preaching  tour  in  Essex.  The 
old  minister  heard  of  it,  and  sent  him  a  letter  ask- 
ing him  to  call  and  see  him  once  more.  He  arrived 
as  early  as  eight  o'clock  one  morning,  but  the  old  pas- 
tor had  been  some  time  on  the  outlook  for  "  his  boy." 
It  was  a  memorable  occasion,  and  the  cheerful  old 
gentleman  was  delighted  with  the  visit,  and  went 
over  some  of  the  principal  scenes  in  his  long  life, 
dwelling  with  especial  pleasure  on  his  college  tutor  at 
Hoxton,  on  the  many  trials  and  deliverances  he  had 
experienced,  and  on  the  many  friends  he  had  known, 
and  who  had  preceded  him  to  the  better  land,  where 
he  hoped  soon  to  rejoin  them.  The  grandson  treas- 
ured up  these  reminiscences,  and  upon  his  stores  we 
have  chiefly  drawn  for  the  above  incidents. 

In  the  year  1856  Mr.  Spurgeon  preached  a  sermon 
at  Stambourne,  on  the  occasion  of  his  grandfather 
completing  the  fiftieth  year  of  his  ministry.  The  date 
of  this  interesting  event  was  27th  May,  and  the  ser- 
mon may  be  found,  as  preached  at  New  Park  Street 
the  previous  Lord's  day,  in  Nos.  81,  82,  of  "  The  New 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  15 

Park  Street  Pulpit."  The  old  man  had  great  delight 
in  promoting  the  sale  of  the  sermons  and  other  pub- 
lications of  his  eminent  grandson,  always  seeking  to 
get  an  early  supply. 

The  venerable  pastor  at  Stambourne,  like  his  elder 
grandson,  was  gifted  with  a  large  head,  and  there  was 
no  small  stock  of  what  was  good  in  it.  He  had  a 
good  voice,  and  was  very  earnest  and  practical  in  his 
preaching,  at  the  same  time  giving  due  prominence 
to  the  glorious  truths  of  the  everlasting  gospel.  In 
person  he  was  the  very  picture  of  neatness,  his  dress 
cravat,  frilled  shirt,  knee  breeches,  buckled  shoes,  and 
silk  stockings,  marking  him  out  as  one  belonging  to 
the  past  age  rather  than  the  present.  He  is  said  to 
have  somewhat  resembled  Rev.  John  Wesley  in  liis 
manners  and  stature,  as  also  in  his  staid,  quiet,  and 
uniform  dress  and  habits.  In  this  respect,  as  also 
in  his  preaching,  he  was  regarded  throughout  his 
native  count}^  as  a  venerable  minister  of  the  old  school. 
For  more  than  half  a  century  he  walked  among  the 
people  and  before  the  world  with  unblemished  repu- 
tation. The  secret  of  which,  was,  he  ivalked  humhly 
with  his  Grod.  His  affable  manners,  his  genuine  piety, 
and  his  uniform  excellence  of  character,  procured  for 
him  the  good- will  of  his  neighbors ;  and,  though  a 
thorough  Nonconformist,  he  was  on  brotherly  terms 
with  some  of  the  parochial  clergy,  and  often  went  to 
the  parish  church  to  hear  the  sermon,  especially  when 
the  cause  of  missions  was  to  be  advocated.     He  was 


16 


Life  ayid  Labors  of 


blessed  with  a  wife  who  was  a  partaker  with  him  of 
"  like  precious  faith  ; "  she  showed  "  piety  at  home," 


MRS.    JAMES    SPURGEOX. 


and  was  a  true  helpmeet  to  her  husband  in  every 
good  word  and  work. 

The  old  gentleman  held  firmly  to  Puritan  theology, 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  17 

and  throughout  his  ministry  kept  back  nothing,  but 
declared  all  the  counsel  of  God.  He  was  a  great 
favorite  with  the  young;  children  gathered  around 
him,  and  with  a  strength  of  attachment  which  riper 
years  did  not  unsettle ;  while  young  people  felt  that 
they  had  in  him  a  wise  counsellor,  a  loving  father, 
and  a  faithful  pastor. 

In  his  last  illness  he  was  sustained  and  comforted 
by  the  truths  of  the  gospel  he  had  so  long  and  so 
faithfully  proclaimed.  It  was  his  desire  that  he  might 
be  permitted  to  bear  witness  for  Christ  on  his  dying 
bed,  and  God  granted  him  his  desire.  He  said  the 
gospel  was  his  only  hope ;  he  was  "  on  the  Rock  of 
Ages,  immutable  as  the  throne  of  God."  His  depart- 
ure from  earth  was  marked  by  joy  and  peace  in  be- 
lieving, and  with  a  glorious  prospect  of  an  abundant 
entrance  into  the  everlasting  kingdom  of  his  Lord  and 
Saviour  Jesus  Christ. 

During  the  last  two  years  of  his  life,  he  had  the 
assistance  in  the  pulpit  of  various  ministers,  but  he 
continued  to  preach  as  often  as  health  and  strength 
permitted;  always,  even  to  the  end,  administering  the 
Lord's  Supper.  He  ceased  his  labors,  and  entered 
into  rest,  12th  February,  1864,  when  in  his  eighty- 
eighth  year.  His  remains  rest  near  his  beloved  sanc- 
tuary, to  which  resting-place  of  the  worn  and  wearied 
body  an  immense  concourse  of  people,  and  many  en- 
deared friends,  attended  him.  The  tears  and  sympa- 
pathy  of  the  people  showed  how  much  he  was  loved 

2 


18  Life  of  Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon. 

and  respected.  Funeral  sermons  were  preached  at 
Stambourne  by  Rev.  !Mr.  Bridge,  of  Ridgewell ;  at 
Cranbrook,  Kent,  by  his  son,  Rev.  John  Spm-geon  ;  and 
at  the  MetropoUtan  Tabernacle  by  his  distinguished 
grandson.  He  left  eight  children,  seven  of  whom 
were  members  of  Christian  churches,  the  elder  son 
then  being  a  deacon  at  Stambourne,  and  the  younger, 
Rev.  John  Spurgeon,  pastor  of  the  Independent 
Church  at  Cranbrook,  the  chief  town  of  the  Weald 
of  Kent. 

The  following  is  a  copy  of  the  memorial  in  the 
present  Stambourne  meeting-house. 


IN  MEMORY   OF 

The  Rev.   JAMES   SPURGEON, 

Who  for  fifty-four  years  was  the  faithful 

and  beloved  Pastor  of  the  Church  iu  this  place, 

and  for  four  years  previously  of  the 

Independent  Church  at  Clare. 

He  departed  this  life  on  the  12th  day  of 
Februar}',  1864, 

In  the  88th  vear  of  his  age. 


CHAPTER   III. 
c.  H.  spurgeon's  father  and  mother. 

REY.  JOHN  SPURGEON  is  taller  than  his  son 
Charles  Haddon,  and  carries  a  fine  figure, 
possesses  a  warm  heart,  and  is  one  of  the  most 
genial  guests  the  writer  has  ever  had  the  pleasure 
of  entertaining.  Though  past  eighty,  he  is  still  an 
interesting  preacher.  For  sixteen  years,  while  in 
business  in  Colchester,  he  discharged  the  duties  of 
pastor  to  the  Independent  Church  at  Tollesbury,  and 
it  was  only  in  middle  life  that  he  devoted  all  his 
time  and  energies  to  the  ministry.  Of  his  seventeen 
children,  Charles  Haddon  is  the  oldest,  one  brother 
and  six  sisters  being  still  living. 

The  mother  of  the  great  preacher,  who  passed  away 
two  years  ago,  was  the  youngest  sister  of  Charles 
Parker  Jarvis,  Esq.,  of  Colchester.  Wherever  she  has 
resided,  she  has  been  known  and  esteemed  for  her 
sincere  piety.  Christian  humility,  and  various  works 
of  usefulness  in  connection  with  the  cause  of  the  Re- 
deemer. The  prayerful  solicitude  and  earnest  care 
with  which  she  trained  up  her  children  have  been 
abundantly  rewarded. 


20  Life  of  Pmtor   C.  H.  Spur g eon. 

Speaking  one  day  to  her  son  Charles  of  her  solici- 
tude for  the  best  interests  of  all  her  children,  she  said, 
"  Ah,  Charlie,  I  have  often  prayed  that  you  might  be 
saved,  but  never  that  you  should  become  a  Baptist." 
To  this  Charles  replied,  "  The  Lord  has  answered 
your  prayer  with  his  usual  bounty,  and  given  you 
more  than  you  asked." 

The  parents  of  the  great  preacher  must  have  made 
considerable  sacrifices,  and  exercised  much  self-denial 
to  give  a  good  education  to  their  children,  and  to 
train  them  up  in  habits  of  thrift ;  but  how  abun- 
dantly have  they  been  rewarded ;  and  what  a  blessed 
recompense  there  has  been,  in  the  thousands  of  mem- 
bers of  the  church  at  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle, 
the  hundreds  of  ministers  trained  in  the  Pastors'  Col- 
lege, the  multitude  of  orphans  cared  for  in  the  Stock- 
well  Orphanage,  and  in  the  various  other  benevolent 
and  philanthropic  enterprises  which  have  had  their 
origin  through  the  ministry  of  their  renowned  elder 
son,  and  which  have  also  been  greatly  indebted  to 
the  efficient  management  of  their  younger  son. 


REV.  JOHN  SPURGEON. 


MRS.  JOHN  SPURGEON. 


CHAPTER  lY. 


BIRTH   AND   EARLY  LIFE   OF  MR.    SPURGEON. 


THE  village  homes  of  England  have  been  justly 
celebrated  as  the  cradles  and  nurseries  of 
many  of  her  greatest  men.  There  is  something  in 
village  life,  much  as  it  is  misunderstood,  —  sometimes 
decried,  and  sometimes  vaguely  applauded,  — which  is 
favorable  to  the  development  of  native  genius.  The 
towns  are  supposed  to  have  more  advantages  than  the 
country  for  the  nurture  of  intelligence  and  the  train- 
ing of  the  expanding  mind,  but  the  country  has  been 
more  prolific  of  greatness  than  the  towns  and  cities. 
Mr.  Spurgeon  was  village-born.  Kelvedon,  Essex,  a 
village  of  about  two  thousand  inhabitants,  was  the 
place  of  his  nativity.  The  house,  as  represented  in 
the  adjacent  cut,  is  no  noble  pile,  though  a  remove 
or  two  higher  up  than  the  common  rural  cottage. 
The  birth  of  the  great  preacher  took  place  19th  June, 
1834. 

The  parish  was  blessed  with  an  incumbent  who  oc- 
cupied the  sphere  long  enough  to  celebrate  his  jubilee. 
His  was  a  life  of  consistent  piety,  and  it  told  for  good 


fQ 


24  Life  and  Labors  of 

on  his  parishioners.  The  Spurgeons  were  Noncon- 
formists, and  from  their  earliest  days  liad  been  taught 
the  principles  of  evangelical  faith  and  Christian  duty. 

Almost  as  soon  as  he  was  old  enough  to  leave  home, 
Charles  was  removed  to  his  grandfather's  house  at 
Stambourne.  A  maiden  aunt  took  the  promising 
child  into  her  especial  care ;  and  there,  under  the 
immediate  oversight  of  the  grandfather,  he  soon  de- 
veloped into  a  thoughtful  boy,  commonly  fonder  of 
his  books  than  of  his  play.  He  would  sometimes  sit 
for  hours  gazing  with  childish  horror  at  the  grim 
figures  of  Bishops  Bonner  and  Gardiner,  and  at  the 
pictures  of  the  martyrs,  in  "  Fox's  Martyrology  ; "  or 
tracing  the  adventures  of  Christian  in  "  The  Pilgrim's 
Progress ; "  or  feasting  his  fancy  on  the  wonderful 
adventures  of  "  Robinson  Crusoe."  The  precocity  of 
the  child  drew  the  attention  of  all  around.  He  would 
astonish  the  grave  deacons  and  matrons,  who  met  at 
his  grandfather's  house  on  Sabbath  evenings,  by  pro- 
posing subjects  for  conversation,  and  offering  perti- 
nent remarks  upon  them;  and  there  were  at  that 
early  period  of  his  life  palpable  indications  of  that 
decision  of  character  and  boldness  of  address  for 
which  he  has  become  so  remarkable. 

One  day,  before  he  was  six  years  old,  seeing  a 
professor  of  religion  standing  in  the  village  street 
with  persons  of  other  than  good  character,  he  went 
up  to  the  big  man,  and  astonished  him  by  asking, 
"  What  doest  thou  liere,  Elijah  ?  " 


Pastor  Q.  H.  Spurgeon.  25 

At  the  age  of  seven,  when  his  father  had  removed 
to  Colchester,  he  returned  home  that  he  might  have 
the  advantages  of  improved  education.  The  develop- 
ment of  the  mind  was  still  far  in  advance  of  his 
years ;  and  his  moral  character,  especially  his  love  of 
truth,  was  even  more  so. 

In  1844,  when  he  was  just  ten  years  old,  he  went 
to  spend  the  summer  vacation  at  his  grandfather's, 
when  an  incident  occurred  which  had  a  considerable 
influence  on  the  boy  at  the  time,  and  still  more  in 
subsequent  years.  We  may  narrate  it  in  Mr.  Spur- 
geon's  own  words,  under  the  title  of  — 

THE  REV.  RICHARD  KNILL'S   PROPHECY. 

"  When  I  was  a  small  boy,"  writes  Mr.  Spurgeon, 
^'  I  was  staying  at  my  grandfather's,  where  I  had 
aforetime  spent  my  earliest  days,  and  as  the  manner 
was,  I  read  the  Scriptures  at  family  prayer.  Once 
upon  a  time,  when  reading  the  passage  in  the  Book 
of  Revelation  which  mentions  the  bottomless  pit,  I 
paused  and  said,  '  Grandpa,  what  can  this  mean?' 
The  answer  was  kind  but  unsatisfactory  :  '  Pooh, 
pooh,  child,  go  on  ! '  The  child  intended,  however,  to 
have  an  explanation,  and  therefore  selected  the  same 
chapter  morning  after  morning,  Sunday  included,  and 
always  halted  at  the  same  verse  to  repeat  the  inquiry. 
At  length  the  venerable  patriarch  capitulated  at  dis- 
cretion by  saying,  '  Well,  dear,  what  is  it  that  puz- 
zles you?'     Now,  the  child  had. often  seen  baskets 


26 


Life  and  Labors  of 


with  bottoms,  which  in  course  of  wear  became  bot- 
tomless, and  allowed  the  fruit  placed  therein  to  fall 
upon  the  ground.  Here,  then,  was  the  puzzle :  if  the 
pit  aforesaid  had  no  bottom,  where  would  all  the 
people  fall  to  who  had  dropped  out  at  its  lower  end? 
A  puzzle  which  rather  startled  the  propriety  of  family 


worship,  and  had  to  be  laid  aside  for  explanation  at 
a  more  convenient  season. 

"  Questions  of  the  like  simple  and  natural  character 
would  frequently  break  up  into  paragraphs  the  family 
Bible-reading,  and  had  there  not  been  a  world  of 
love  and  license  allowed  to  the  inquisitive  reader,  he 
would  soon  have  been  deposed  from  his  office.     As 


Pastor   C.  H.  Sjmrgeon.  27 

it  was,  the  Scriptures  were  not  very  badly  rendered, 
and  were  probably  quite  as  interesting  as  if  they 
had  not  been  interspersed  with  original  and  curious 
inquiries. 

"  On  one  of  these  occasions  Mr.  Knill,  then  of 
Chester,  now  of  '  New  Jerusalem,'  whose  name  is  a 
household  word,  and  whose  memory  is  precious  to 
thousands  at  home  and  abroad,  stayed  at  the  min 
ister's  house  on  Friday,  in  readiness  to  preach  at 
Stambourne  for  the  London  Missionary  Society  on 
the  following  Sunday.  He  never  looked  into  a  young 
face  without  yearning  to  impart  some  spiritual  gift. 
He  was  all  love,  kindness,  earnestness,  and  warmth, 
and  coveted  the  souls  of  men  as  misers  desire  the 
gold  their  hearts  pine  for.  He  heard  the  boy  read, 
and  commended  him.  A  little  judicious  praise  is  the 
sure  way  to  win  a  young  heart.  An  agreement  was 
made  with  the  lad  that  on  the  next  morning,  Saturday, 
he  would  show  Mr.  Knill  over  the  garden,  and  take 
him  for  a  walk  before  breakfast ;  a  task  so  flattering 
to  juvenile  self-importance  was  sure  to  be  entered 
upon.  There  was  a  tap  at  the  door,  and  the  child  was 
soon  out  of  bed  and  in  the  garden  with  his  ncAV  friend, 
who  won  his  heart  at  once  by  pleasing  stories  and  kind 
words,  and  by  giving  him  a  chance  to  communicate  in 
return.  The  talk  was  all  about  Jesus,  and  the  pleas- 
antness of  loving  him.  Nor  was  it  mere  talk ;  there 
was  pleading  too.  Into  the  great  yew-tree  arbor, 
cut  into  the  shape  of  a  sugar-loaf,  both  went,  and  the 


28   '  Life  of  Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon. 

soul-winner  knelt  down,  and  with  his  arms  around  the 
youthful  neck,  he  poured  out  vehement  intercession 
for  the  salvation  of  the  lad.  The  next  morning  wit- 
nessed the  same  instruction  and  supplication,  and  the 
next  also  ;  while  all  day  long  the  pair  were  never  far 
apart,  and  never  out  of  each  other's  thoughts.  The 
mission  sermons  were  preached  in  the  old  Puritan 
meeting-house,  and  the  man  of  God  was  called  to  go 
to  the  next  halting-place  in  his  tour  as  deputation  for 
the  Society,  but  he  did  not  leave  till  he  had  uttered 
a  most  remarkable  prophecy.  After  even  more 
earnest  prayer  with  his  little  protege^  he  appeared  to 
have  a  burden  on  his  mind,  and  he  could  not  go  till 
he  had  eased  himself  of  it.  In  after  years  he  was 
heard  to  say  that  he  felt  a  singular  interest  in  me, 
and  an  earnest  expectation  for  which  he  could  not 
account.  Calling  the  family  together,  he  took  me  on 
his  knee,  and  I  distinctly  remember  his  saying :  '  I 
do  not  know  how  it  is,  but  I  feel  a  solemn  presen- 
timent that  this  child  will  preach  the  gospel  to 
thousands,  and  God  will  bless  him  to  many  souls. 
So  sure  am  I  of  this,  that  when  my  little  man 
preaches  in  Rowland  Hill's  chapel,  as  he  will  do 
one  day,  I  should  like  him  to  promise  me  that  he 
will  give  out  the  hymn  commencing,  — 

*'  God  moves  in  a  mysterious  way 
His  wonders  to  perform."  ' 

This  promise  was  of  course  made,  and  was  followed 
by  another,  namely,  that  at  his  express  desire  I  would 


THE    ARBOR    IX    ITS    PRESENT    CONDITION. 


30  Life  and  Labors  of 

learn  tlie  hymn  in  question,  and  think  of   what   he 
had  said. 

"  The  prophetic  declaration  was  fulfilled.     When  I 
had  the  pleasure  of  preaching  the  Word  of  life  in 
Surrey  Chapel,  and   also  when   I   preached   in   Mr. 
Hill's  first  pulpit  at  Wotton-under-Edge,  the  hymn  was 
sung  on  both  occasions.     Did  the  words  of  Mr.  Knill 
help  to  bring  about  their  own  fulfilment  ?    I  think  so. 
I  believed  them,  and  looked  forward  to  the  time  when 
I  should  preach  the  word.      I  felt  very  powerfully 
that  no  unconverted  person  might  dare  to  ent6r  the 
ministry.      This   made  me  more  intent   on   seeking 
salvation,  and  more  hopeful  of  it ;  and  when  by  grace 
I  was  enabled  to  cast  myself  on  the  Saviour's  love,  it 
was  not  long  before  my  mouth  began  to  speak  of  His 
redemption.     How  came  that  sober-minded  minister 
to  speak  thus  to  and  of  one  into  whose  future  God 
alone  could   see  ?     How  came   it   that  he  live;^   to 
rejoice  with  his  younger  brother  in  the  truth  of  all 
that  he  had  spoken  ?    The  answer  is  plain.   But  mark 
one  particular  lesson :  would  to  God  that  we  were  all 
as  wise  as  Richard  Knill  in  habitually  sowing  beside 
all  waters  !     Mr.  Knill  might  very  naturally  have  left 
the  minister's  little  grandson  on  the  plea  that  he  had 
other  duties  of  more  importance  than  praying  with 
children;  and  yet  who  shall  say  that  he  did  not  effect 
as  much  by  that  simple  act  of  humble  kindness  as  by 
dozens  of  sermons  addressed  to  crowded  audiences  ? 
To  me  his  tenderness  in  considering  the  little  one  was 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  31 

fraught  with  everlasting  consequences,  and  I   must 
ever  feel  that  his  time  was  well  laid  out." 


In  a  letter  written  by  the  venerable  James  Spurgeon 
to  a  friend,  there  are  a  few  additional  particulars. 
He  remarks :  "  Good  Mr.  Knill,  laying  his  venerable 
hands  on  the  child's  head,  said,  '  I  have  heard  old 
ministers  and  young  ones  read  well,  but  never  did  I 
hear  a  little  boy  read  so  correctly  before.  I  hope  he 
will  one  day  fill  Rowland  Hill's  pulpit.' 

"  When  Mr.  Knill  first  heard  of  my  grandson  being 
in  London,  he  wrote  to  me  for  his  address.  The  reason 
he  gave  was  that,  being  then  from  home,  and  meeting 
with  a  large  party  of  friends  at  dinner,  the  conversa- 
tion turned  upon  a  wonderful  preacher  who  was  pas- 
tor at  New  Park  Street  Chapel,  London.  Inquiring 
his  name,  he  was  told  it  was  Spurgeon.  '  Spurgeon, 
Spurgeon  ?  '  said  Mr.  Knill,  '  I  know  him.' 

"  '  No,  no,'  replied  his  friend  ;  '  I  think  not.' 

"  '  Yes,  I  do,'  returned  Mr.  Knill,  '  I  saw  him  at  his 
grandfather's  house  some  years  ago,  when  I  preached 
in  the  village  for  the  missionary  cause,  and  I  have 
always  been  convinced  that  he  would  one  day  be  a 
most  extraordinary  character  in  the  Christian  world. 
I  remember  taking  the  lad  into  the  garden  ;  I  con- 
versed with  him,  and  prayed  with  him,  and  found 
that  he  possessed  a  mind  far  beyond  his  years.' " 

Until  the  erection  of  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle, 
"Rowland  Hill's  Chapel"  was  the  largest  Noncon- 
formist place   of  worship   in  London,  at  least  south 


32  Lif^  ^>it7  Labors  of 

of  the  Thames.  It  was  the  place  for  great  gatherings 
in  connection  with  missions,  both  for  the  London  and 
the  Baptist  Missionary  Societies.  It  was  a  kind  of 
Nonconformist  Cathedral,  and  to  preach  in  it,  especi- 
ally on  a  great  occasion,  was  deemed  no  small  honor. 
Mr.  Spurgeon  has  preached  there  on  several  occa- 
sions, and  during  the  cleaning  and  re-painting  of  the 
Tabernacle  on  one  occasion,  the  trustees  of  the  Chapel 
kindly  placed  the  building  at  his  disposal  for  week- 
night  services.  Among  his  published  sermons  there 
are  two  (numbers  767  and  768)  which  were  preached 
in  what  was  known  as  Surrey  Chapel. 

There  were  several  habits  which  marked  the  char- 
acter of  the  future  great  preacher  from  very  early 
days.  One  was  his  love  for  the  house  of  God  and  the 
worship  of  the  sanctuary.  He  was  not  only  willing 
to  go,  but  it  was  a  pleasure  and  a  delight  to  be  found 
there.  Another  trait  in  his  character  was  his  love  of 
truth.  Never  did  he  prevaricate  or  deny  or  hide  the 
truth,  and  never  was  there  occasion  to  question  his 
word.  Yet  another  feature  in  his  character  was  his 
love  of  prayer.  His  father  says  that  Charles  was 
often  found  in  the  hay-rick,  or  the  manger,  praying, 
or  reading  aloud,  and  sometimes  talking  and  preach- 
ing to  his  brother  and  sisters. 

Not  less  was  he  remarkable  for  the  depth  of  his 
feeling,  and  for  a  strong  and  determined  will.  The 
last  was  at  one  time  a  cause  of  anxiety  to  his  parents, 
and  earnestly  did  they  pray  that  his  strong  passions 


Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeon.  33 

and  determined  will  might  be  properly  controlled  and 
directed. 

Mr.  Spiirgeon's  educational  advantages  were  above 
those  of  many  in  the  sphere  of  life  in  which  his  par- 
ents moved.  He  went  first  to  Mr.  Walker's  school  at 
Colchester,  and  afterwards  spent  four  years  in  the 
same  town  in  the  school  conducted  by  Mr.  Henry 
Lewis.  Here  he  became  a  personal  friend  of  Mr. 
Leeding,  the  head  usher,  to  whom  he  was  indebted 
for  a  thorough  grounding  in  Latin  and  Mathematics. 
He  was  also,  for  twelve  months,  at  an  Agricultural 
College  at  Maidstone ;  and  afterwards  he  went  to 
Newmarket  to  be  an  assistant  in  the  school  of  Mr. 
Swindell.  There  he  pursued  his  studies  with  remark- 
able diligence.  Here  also  his  faith  grew,  and  his  zeal 
for  the  cause  of  the  Redeemer  abounded.  He  had  to 
practise  self-denial,  too,  for  his  means  were  small  and 
his  purse  light ;  but  all  was  done  in  order  to  obtain 
knowledge,  that  he  might  therewith  serve  his  God 
and  Saviour. 

We  have,  however,  somewhat  anticipated  the  story 
of  Mr.  Spurgeon's  conversion,  which  is  fully  described 
in  the  next  chapter. 


CHAPTER  V. 


MR.    SPURGEON  S   CONVERSION    AND    BAPTISM. 


U 


7E  give  the  story  of  Mr.  Spurgeon's  conversion 
in  his  own  words.     Speaking  of  the  gospel  as 
the  power  of  God  unto  salvation,  he  says :  — 

"  I  will  tell  you  how  I  myself  was  brought  to  the 
knowledge  of  this  truth.  It  may  happen  that  the 
telling  of  it  will  bring  some  one  else  to  Christ.  It 
pleased  God  in  my  childhood  to  convince  me  of  sin. 
I  lived  a  miserable  creature,  finding  no  hope,  no 
comfort,  thinking  that  surely  God  would  never  save 
me.  At  last  the  worst  came  to  the  worst,  —  I  was 
miserable ;  I  could  do  scarcely  anything.  My  heart 
was  broken  in  pieces.  Six  months  did  I  pray  ;  prayed 
agonizingly  with  all  my  heart,  and  never  had  an  an- 
swer. I  resolved  that,  in  the  town  where  I  lived,  I 
would  visit  every  place  of  worship,  in  order  to  find 
out  the  way  of  salvation.  I  felt  I  was  willing  to  do 
anything,  and  be  anything,  if  God  would  only  forgive 
me.  I  set  off,  determined  to  go  round  to  all  the 
chapels,  and  I  went  to  all  the  places  of  worship ;  and 
though  I  dearly  venerate  the  men  that  occupy  those 


Life  of  Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeon.  35 

pulpits  now,  and  did  so  then,  I  am  bound  to  say  that 
I  never  heard  them  once  fully  preach  the  gospel. 
I  mean  by  that,  they  preached  truth,  great  truths, 
many  good  truths  that  were  fitting  to  many  of  their 
congregations,  —  spiritually  minded  people  ;  but  what 
I  wanted  to  know  was,  How  can  I  get  my  sins  for- 
given ?  and  they  never  told  me  that.  I  wanted  to 
hear  how  a  poor  sinner,  under  a  sense  of  sin,  might 
find  peace  with  God;  and  when  I  went  I  heard  a 
sermon  on,  '  Be  not  deceived,  God  is  not  mocked,' 
which  cut  me  up  worse,  but  did  not  say  how  I  might 
escape.  I  went  again  another  day,  and  the  text  was 
something  about  the  glories  of  the  righteous ;  nothing 
for  poor  me  !  I  was  something  like  a  dog  under  the 
table,  not  allowed  to  eat  of  the  children's  food.  I 
went  time  after  time,  and  I  can  honestly  say  I  don't 
know  that  I  ever  went  without  prayer  to  God,  and 
I  am  sure  there  was  not  a  more  attentive  hearer  in 
all  the  place  than  myself,  for  I  panted  and  longed  to 
understand  how  I  might  be  saved. 

"  At  last,  one  snowy  day,  —  it  snowed  so  much  I 
could  not  go  to  the  place  I  had  determined  to  go  to, 
and  I  was  obliged  to  stop  on  the  road,  and  it  was  a 
blessed  stop  to  me,  —  I  found  rather  an  obscure 
street,  and  turned  down  a  court,  and  there  was  a 
little  chapel.  I  wanted  to  go  somewhere,  but  I  did 
not  know  this  place.  It  was  the  Primitive  Methodist 
Chapel.  I  had  heard  of  these  people  from  many,  and 
how  they  sang   so   loudly  that  they  made   people's 


36  Life  mid  Labors  of 

heads  ache  ;  but  that  did  not  matter.  I  wanted  to 
know  how  I  might  be  saved,  and  if  they  made  my 
head  ache  ever  so  much,  I  did  not  care.  So,  sitting- 
down,  the  service  went  on,  but  no  minister  came ;  at 
last  a  very  thin-looking  man  came  into  the  pulpit,  and 
opened  his  Bible,  and  read  these  words :  '  Look  unto 
Me,  and  be  ye  saved,  all  the  ends  of  the  earth.'  Just 
setting  his  eyes  upon  me,  as  if  he  knew  all  my  heart, 
he  said,  'Young  man,  you  are  in  trouble,'  Well,  I 
was,  sure  enough.  Says  he, '  You  will  never  get  out 
of  it  unless  you  look  to  Christ.'  And  then,  lifting  up 
his  hands,  he  cried  out,  as  only  a  Primitive  Methodist 
could  do, '  Look,  look,  look  I  It  is  only  look,'  said  he. 
I  saw  at  once  the  way  of  salvation.  Oh,  how  I  did 
leap  for  joy  at  that  moment!  I  know  not  what  else 
he  said.  I  did  not  take  much  notice  of  it ;  I  was  so 
possessed  with  that  one  thought.  Like  as  when  the 
brazen  serpent  was  lifted  up,  they  only  looked  and 
were  healed.  I  had  been  waiting  to  do  fifty  things, 
but  when  I  heard  this  word,  '  Look,'  what  a  charming- 
word  it  seemed  to  me  I  Oh,  I  looked  until  I  could 
almost  have  looked  my  eyes  away  ;  and  in  heaven 
I  will  look  on  still  in  my  joy  unutterable! " 

Mr.  Spurgeon,  with  all  his  strong  attachment  to 
truths  which  relate  to  divine  sovereignty,  —  and  he 
has  ever  been  bold  and  unflinching-  in  his  proclama- 
tion of  them,  —  has  always  presented  the  other  side 
of  Calvinism,  the  call  of  the  gospel  to  all  who  hear 
it;  hence,  he  says,  as  one  of  the  lessons  of  his  own 
conversion  :  — 


Pastor   C.  H.   Spur g eon.  37 

"  I  now  think  I  am  bound  never  to  preach  a  sermon 
without  preaching  to  sinners.  I  do  think  that  a 
minister  who  can  preach  a  sermon  williout  address- 
ing sinners,  does  not  know  how  to  preach.'.' 

Several  years  after  his  conversion,  on  11th  October, 
1864,  Mr.  Spurgeon  preached  in  the  Primitive  Metho- 
dist Chapel  at  Colchester,  and  took  for  his  text 
the  ever-memorable  words  (Isa.  xlv.  22),  "  Look 
unto  Me,  and  be  ye  saved,"  <fec.  "  That  was  the 
text,"  said  he,  "  that  I  heard  preached  from  in  this 
chapel  when  the  Lord  converted  me."  And  point- 
ing to  a  seat  on  the  left  hand,  under  the  gallery,  he 
said,  "  I  was  sitting  in  that  j^^w  ivhen  I  was  converted.''^ 
This  grateful  reference  to  the  place  and  work  clone 
by  the  Lord  there  made  a  profound  impression  on 
the  congregation,  the  hearts  of  many  being  thrilled 
with  joy,  and  drawn  out  in  love  to  the  young 
preacher. 

Going  back  to  Mr.  Spurgeon's  early  ministerial 
life,  we  can  distinctly  trace  the  groundwork  of  that 
steadfast  adherence  to  Puritan  theology  for  which 
he  has  been  so  remarkable  all  through  his  public 
career.  His  sentiments  at  that  early  time  have  been 
preserved  in  the  following  letter  written  to  one  of 
his  uncles :  — 

(Date.) 

My  dear  Uncle,  —  Dumb  men  make  no  mischief.  Your 
silence  and  my  neglect  make  me  think  of  the  days  when  letters 
were  costly,  and  not  of  penny  postage.     You  have  doubtless  heard 


38  Life  and  Labors  of 

of  me  as  a  top-tree  Antiuomian.  I  trust  you  know  enough  of  me 
to  disbelieve  it.  It  is  an  object  of  my  life  to  disprove  tlie  slander. 
I  groan  daily  under  a  body  of  sin  and  corruption.  Ob,  for  the 
time  when  I  shall  drop  this  flesh,  and  be  free  from  sin  !  I  am 
become  more  and  more  convinced  that  to  attempt  to  be  saved  by 
a  mixed  covenant  of  works  and  faith  is,  in  the  words  of  Berridge, 
'  to  yoke  a  snail  with  an  elephant.'  I  desire  to  press  forward 
for  direction  to  my  Master  in  all  things  ;  but  as  to  trusting  to 
my  own  obedience  and  righteousness,  I  should  be  worse  than 
a  fool,  and  ten  times  worse  than  a  madman.  Poor  dependent 
creatures  !  prayer  liad  need  be  our  constant  employment ;  the 
foot  of  the  throne  our  continual  dwelling-place  ;  for  the  Rock 
of  Ages  is  our  only  safe  hiding-place.  I  rejoice  in  an  assured 
knowledge  by  faith  of  an  interest  in  Christ,  and  of  the  certainty 
of  my  eternal  salvation.  Yet  what  strivings,  what  conflicts, 
what  dangers,  what  enemies  are  in  my  way  !  The  foes  in  my 
heart  are  so  strong  that  they  would  have  killed  me  and  sent 
me  to  hell  ere  this,  had  the  Lord  left  me  ;  but,  hlessed  be  His 
name !  His  electing,  redeeming,  and  saving  love  has  got  fast 
hold  of  me  ;  and  who  is  able  to  pluck  me  out  of  my  Father's 
hand  ?  On  my  bended  knees  I  have  often  cried  for  succor  ; 
and,  bless  His  name  !  He  has  hitherto  heard  my  cry.  Oh,  if  I 
did  not  know  that  all  the  Lord's  people  have  soul- contentions, 
I  should  give  up  all  for  lost!  I  rejoice  that  the  promises  left 
on  record  are  meant  for  me,  as  well  as  for  every  saint  of  His, 
and  as  such  I  desire  to  grasp  them.  Let  the  whole  earth,  and 
even  God's  professing  people,  cast  out  my  name  as  evil,  my 
Lord  and  Master  will  not.  I  glory  in  the  distinguishing  grace 
of  God,  and  will  not,  by  the  grace  of  God,  stir  one  inch  from 
my  principles,  or  think  of  adhering  to  the  present  fashionable 
sort  of  religion. 

Oh,  could  I  become  like  holy  men  of  past  ages,  —  fearless 
of  men,  holding  sweet  communion  with  God,  weaned  more 
from  the  world,  and  enabled  to  fix  my  thoughts  on  spiritual 
things  entirely !  But  when  I  would  serve  God  I  find  my 
old  deceitful  heart  full  of  the  very  essence  of  hell,  rising  up  into 
my  mouth,  polluting  all  I  say  and  all  I  do.     What  should  I 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  39 

do  il",  like  you,  I  were  called  to  be  engaged  about  things  of 
time  and  sense  ?  I  fear  I  should  be  neither  diligent  in  business 
nor  fervent  in  spirit.  '  But '  (say  you)  '  he  keeps  talking  all 
about  himself.'  True,  he  does ;  he  cannot  help  it.  Self  is  too 
much  his  master.  I  am  proud  of  my  own  ignorance,  and,  like  a 
toad,  bloated  with  my  venomous  pride,  —  proud  of  what  I  have 
not  got,  and  boasting  when  I  should  be  moaning.  I  trust  you 
have  greater  freedom  from  your  own  corruptions  than  I  have, 
and  in  secret,  social,  and  family  prayer,  enjoy  more  blessed, 
sanctified  liberty  at  the  footstool  of  mercy. 

Rejoice  !  for  heaven  awaits  us,  and  all  the  Lord's  family ! 
The  mansion  is  ready  ;  the  crown  is  made  ;  the  harp  is  strung ; 
and  there  are  no  willows  there.  May  we  be  enabled  to  go  on, 
bold  as  lions,  valiant  for  the  truth  and  cause  of  King  Jesus,  and 
by  the  help  of  the  Spirit  vow  eternal  warfare  against  every  sin, 
and  rest  not  until  the  Sword  of  the  Spirit  has  destroyed  all  the 
enemies  in  our  hearts  !  . 

May  we  be  enabled  to  trust  the  Lord,  for  he  will  help  us. 
We  must  conquer,  we  cannot  be  lost.  Lost  !  Impossible.  For 
who  is  able  to  snatch  us  out  of  our  Father's  hands  ? 

May  the  Lord  bless  you  exceedingly. 

Your  affectionate  nephew, 

C.   H.   Spurgeon. 

In  this  remarkable  letter  it  is  not  difficult  to  trace 
the  future  eminent  preacher  and  sound  divine  ;  and 
while  it  may  seem  to  some  to  contain  expressions 
beyond  the  experience  of  many  ordinary  Christians, 
and  very  unusual  in  one  who  was  still  but  a  youth,  it 
must  be  remembered  that  he  was  in  no  sense  an 
ordinary  individual,  and  that  there  was  in  him,  even 
at  this  early  period,  the  making  of  the  future  man, 
and  the  distinct  foreshadowing  of  the  well-instructed 
and  deeply  taught  witness  for  the  truth  of  God. 


40  Life  and  Labors  of 

While  Mr.  Spurgeon  was  still  at  Newmarket  a 
fierce  struggle  was  going  on  in  his  mind.  He  was 
assailed  by  unbelief  in  one  of  its  most  hateful  forms. 
From  doubting  some  things,  he  came  to  question  all 
thino's,  even  his  own  existence.  The  conflict  was 
not  long,  but  exceedingly  fierce  and  determined. 
Speaking  of  a  freethinker,  he  says  :  "  I  too  have 
been  like  him.  There  was  an  evil  hour  in  which  I 
slipped  the  anchors  of  my  faith.  1  cut  the  cable  of 
my  belief.  I  no  longer  moored  myself  hard  by  the 
coast  of  Revelation.  I  allowed  my  vessel  to  drift 
before  the  wind,  and  thus  started  on  the  voyage  of 
infidelity.  1  said  to  reason,  '  Be  thou  my  captain  ; '  I 
said  to  my  own  brain,  '  Be  thou  my  rudder  ; '  and  I 
started  on  my  mad  voyage.  Thank  God!  it  is  all 
over  now ;  but  I  will  tell  you  its  brief  history :  it 
was  one  hurried  sailing  over  the  tempestuous  sea  of 
free-thought.  Satan  often  overshoots  his  mark  ;  the 
terrible  wickedness  of  his  horrid  blasphemies,  like  a 
too  heavy  charge  of  powder,  bursts  the  gun,  and  he 
and  his  cause  are  damaged,  while  the  object  he 
sought  to  destroy  escapes  to  sing  of  delivering  grace 
and  redeeming  love." 

During  Mr.  Spurgeon's  residence  at  Newmarket 
his  mind  became  exercised  concerning  the  subject  of 
baptism.  His  father,  his  grandfather,  and  his  ances- 
tors, had  held  and  practised  infant  sprinkling.  To 
seem  to  be  wiser  on  this  subject  than  his  parents  and 
his    forefathers    for    several    generations   might    be 


Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeon.  41 

mistaken  for  self-assertion ;  but  the  prayerful  search- 
ing of  the  Word  led  him  to  the  full  conviction  that 
the  baptism  of  Holy  Scripture  is  immersion,  upon  a 
profession  of  faith  personally  made.  After  some 
correspondence  his  father,  satisfied  that  his  son 
attached  no  saving  efficacy  either  to  the  water  or 
the  act  of  baptism,  and  that  his  motives  were  high 
and  holy,  withdrew  his  objections,  and  the  necessary 
steps  wei'e  taken  in  accordance  with  the  son's  desire. 
His  last  letter  on  this  subject  was  written  on  1st  May, 
1850.  In  it  he  says  :  "  If  1  know  my  own  heart  I 
believe  the  sentiment  uppermost  there  is  that  salva- 
tion is  not  of  man,  —  that  no  works,  however  holy, 
contribute  in  the  least  to  save  my  soul ;  that  the 
work  is  all  of  God's  sovereign  electing  love,  and  that 
if  ever  I  am  saved  it  will  be  by  His  power  alone." 

On  the  3d  of  May  the  baptism  took  place.  Mr. 
Spurgeon's  own  account  of  the  transaction  is  so 
interesting,  and  so  full  of  pathos  and  devout  emotion, 
mingled  with  graphic  narration,  that  we  transfer 
the  description  from  "  The  Sword  and  the  Trowel  "  for 
April,  1890. 

"  In  January,  1850,  I  was  enabled,  by  divine  grace, 
to  lay  hold  on  Jesus  Christ  as  my  Saviour,  while 
hearing  the  gospel  preached  at  Colchester.  Being 
called,  in  the  providence  of  God,  to  live  at  New- 
market as  usher  in  a  school,  I  essayed  to  join  my- 
self to  the  church  of  believers  in  that  town;  but 
according  to  my  reading  of  Holy  Scripture,  the  be- 


42  Life  of  Pastor  0.  H.  Spurgeon. 

liever  in  Christ  should  be  buried  with  him  in  baptism, 
and  so  enter  upon  his  open  Christian  life.  I  cast 
about  to  find  a  Baptist  minister,  and  I  failed  to  find 
one  nearer  than  Isleham,  in  the  Fen  country,  where 
resided  a  certain  Mr.  W.  W.  Cantlow,  Avho  had  once 
been  a  missionary  in  Jamaica,  but  was  then  pastor 
of  one  of  the  Isleham  Baptist  churches.  ^ly  parents 
wished  me  to  follow  my  own  convictions,  Mr.  Cant- 
low  arranged  to  baptize  me,  and  my  employer  gave 
me  a  day's  holiday  for  the  purpose. 

"  I  can  never  forget  the  3d  of  May,  1850  ;  it  was 
my  mother's  birthday,  and  1  myself  was  within  a 
few  weeks  of  being  sixteen  years  of  age.  I  was 
up  early,  to  have  a  couple  of  hours  for  quiet  prayer 
and  dedication  to  God.  Then  I  had  some  eight 
miles  to  walk,  to  reach  the  spot  where  1  was  to  be 
immersed  into  the  Triune  name,  according  to  the 
sacred  command.  What  a  walk  it  was  !  What 
thoughts  and  prayers  thronged  my  soul  during  that 
morning's  journey.  It  was  by  no  means  a  warm 
day,  and  therefore  all  the  better  for  the  two  or 
three  hours  of  quiet  foot-travel  which  I  enjoyed. 
The  sifjht  of  Mr.  Cantlow's  smiling^  face  was  a  full 
reward  for  that  country  tramp.  I  think  I  see  the 
good  man  now,  and  the  white  ashes  of  the  turf  fire 
by  which  we  stood  and  talked  together  about  the 
solemn  exercise  which  lay  before  us. 

'■.  We  went  together  to  the  Ferry,  for  the  Isleham 
friends  had  not  degenerated  to  indoor  immersion,  in 


44  Life  and  Labors  of 

a  batli  made  by  the  art  of  man,  but  used  the  ampler 
baptistery  of  the  flowing  river. 

"  Tsleham  Ferry,  on  the  river  Lark,  is  a  verv  quiet 
spot,  half  a  mile  from  the  village,  and  rarely  dis- 
turbed by  traffic  at  any  time  of  the  year.  Tlie  river 
itself  is  a  beautiful  stream,  dividing  Cambridgeshire 
from  Suffolk,  and  is  dear  to  local  anglers.  The 
navigation  of  this  little  river  Lark  is  soon  to  be  re- 
opened between  Bury-St.-Edmund's  and  the  sea  at 
Lynn  ;  but  at  Isleham  it  is  more  in  its  infancy. 

"  The  ferry -house,  hidden  in  the  picture  by  the 
trees,  is  freely  opened  for  the  convenience  of  minister 
and  candidates  at  a  baptizing.  Where  the  barge  is 
hauled  up  for  repairs  the  preacher  takes  his  stand, 
when  the  baptizing  is  on  a  Aveek-day  and  there  are 
few  spectators  present.  But  on  Lord's-day,  when 
great  numbers  are  attracted,  the  preacher,  standing 
in  a  barge  moored  mid-stream,  speaks  the  Word  to 
the  crowds  on  both  sides  of  the  river.  This  can  be 
done  the  more  easily,  as  the  river  is  not  very  wide. 
Where  three  persons  are  seen  at  a  stand  is  the 
usual  place  for  entering  the  water.  The  right  depth, 
with  sure  footing,  may  soon  be  found  and  so  the 
delightful  service  proceeds  in  the  gently  flowing 
stream.  No  accident  or  disorder  has  ever  marred 
the  proceedings.  In  the  course  of  seven  or  eight 
miles  the  Lark  serves  no  fewer  than  five  Baptist 
churches,  and  they  would  on  no  account  give  up 
baptizing  out  of  doors. 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  45 

"  To  me,"  resumes  Mr.  Spurgeon,  "  there  seemed  a 
great  concourse  on  that  week-day.  Dressed,  I  be- 
lieve, in  a  jacket,  with  a  boy's  turn-down  collar,  I 
attended  the  service  previous  to  the  ordinance ;  but 
all  remembrance  of  it  has  gone  from  me.  My 
thoughts  were  in  the  water,  sometimes  with  my 
Lord  in  joy,  and  sometimes  Avith  myself  in  trembling 
awe  at  making  so  public  a  confession.  There  were 
first  to  be  baptized  two  women,  Diana  Wilkinson 
and  Eunice  Fuller,  and  I  was  asked  to  conduct  them 
througli  the  water  to  the  minister ;  but  this  1  most 
timidly  declined.  It  was  a  new  experience  to  me, 
never  having  seen  a  baptism  before,  and  I  was  afraid 
of  making  some  mistake.  The  wind  blew  down  the 
river  with  a  cutting  blast  as  my  turn  came  to  wade 
into  the  flood  ;  but  after  I  had  walked  a  few  steps, 
and  noted  the  people  on  the  ferry-boat  and  in  boats 
and  on  either  shore,  I  felt  as  if  heaven  and  earth 
and  hell  might  all  gaze  upon  me ;  for  I  was  not 
ashamed,  there  and  then,  to  own  myself  a  follower 
of  the  Lamb.  Timidity  was  gone ;  I  have  scarcely 
met  with  it  since.  I  lost  a  thousand  fears  in  that 
river  Lark,  and  found  that '  in  keeping  His  command- 
ments there  is  great  reward.'  It  was  a  thrice  happy 
day  to  me.  God  be  praised  for  the  preserving  good- 
ness which  allows  me  to  write  of  it  with  delight  at 
the  distance  of  forty  years ! 

"  '  Many  days  have  passed  since  then, 
Many  changes  I  have  seen  ; 
Yet  have  been  nphehl  till  now  ; 
Who  could  hold  me  up  but  Thou  ?  '  " 


46 


Life  and  Labors  of 


111  a  note  in  the  magazine  above-mentioned,  Pastor 
J.  A.  Wilson,  the  successor  of  Mr.  Cantlow  at  Isleham, 
remarks :  — 

"  The  recollection  of  the  service  at  the  riverside 
is  fondly  cherished  by  several  still  living,  who  rejoice 
that  they  were  there.  But  the  most  precious  memory 
of  that  day  is  the  prayer-meeting  in  the  vestry  in 
the  evening,  when  Mr.  Spurgeon  prayed,  and  people 
wondered  and  wept  for  joy,  as  they  listened  to  the 
lad.  One  may  be  excused  for  envying  those  who 
were  there." 

The  people  at  Isleham  have  commemorated  Mr. 
Spurgeon's  connection  with  the  place  in  a  way  which 
will  perpetuate  the  memorable  event.  When,  in  1888, 
they  built,  a  new  schoolroom,  adjoining  the  chapel,  a 
stone  was  laid  which  bears  the  following  inscription  : 


©  © 

THIS   STONE   WAS    LAID   ON    SEPTEMBER    i9th,    1888, 


Mr.    G     APTHORPE, 
in    memory    of    the    late 

REV.   W.  W.  CANTLOW, 

WHO,   WHILE    PASTOR    OF  THE   CHURCH,    BAPTIZED   THE 

REV.    C.    H.    SPURGEON, 

AT    ISLEHAM    FERRY,    ON    MAY    3RD.     I850. 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  47 

It  may  be  well  to  add  here  Mr.  Spurgeon's  re- 
marks on  reviewing  the  act  and  proceedings  of  the 
day,  after  the  space  of  forty  years.     He  says  :  — 

"  If  any  ask  why  was  I  thus  baptized,  I  answer, 
because  I  believed  it  to  be  an  ordinance  of  Christ, 
very  specially  joined  by  Him  with  faith  in  His  name. 
'  He  that  believeth  and  is  baptized  shall  be  saved.' 
I  had  no  superstitious  idea  that  baptism  would  save 
me,  for  I  was  saved.  I  did  not  seek  to  have  sin 
washed  away  by  water,  for  I  believed  that  my  sins 
were  forgiven  me  through  faith  in  Christ  Jesus. 
Yet  I  regarded  baptism  as  the  token  to  the  believer 
of  cleansing,  the  emblem  of  his  burial  with  his 
Lord,  and  the  outward  avowal  of  his  new  birth.  I 
did  not  trust  in  it;  but  because  I  trusted  in  Jesus 
as  my  Saviour  I  felt  bound  to  obey  Him  as  my  Lord, 
and  follow  the  example  which  he  set  us  in  Jordan, 
in  His  own  baptism.  I  did  not  fulfil  the  outward 
ordinance  to  join  a  party,  and  become  a  Baptist,  but 
to  be  a  Christian  after  the  apostolic  fashion ;  for  they, 
when  they  believed,  were  baptized. 

"  It  is  now  questioned  whether  John  Bunyan  was 
baptized  ;  but  the  same  question  can  never  be  raised 
concerning  me.  I,  who  scarcely  belong  to  any  sect, 
am,  nevertheless,  by  no  means  willing  to  have  it 
doubted  in  time  to  come  whether  or  no  I  followed 
the  conviction  of  my  heart.  I  read  the  New  Testa- 
ment for  myself,  and  saw  believers'  baptism  there  ;  and 
I  had  no  mind  to  neglect  what  I  saw  to  be  the  Lord's 


48  Life  and  Labors  of 

order.  If  others  see  not  as  I  do,  to  their  own  Master 
they  stand  or  fall ;  but  for  me,  the  perceptions  of  my 
understanding  in  spiritual  things  were  the  law  of  my 
life,  and  I  hope  they  will  always  be  so.  Dear  reader, 
let  us  follow  the  Lamb  whithersoever  He  goeth  ! " 

With  the  youthful  8purgeon  a  profession  of  faith 
meant  something.  It  was  the  beginning  of  a  fight,  — 
a  fight  with  error,  wickedness,  and  unbelief.  He 
beQ:an  at  once  to  sow  the  seed  of  the  kino-dom,  in 
the  Sunday-school,  and  in  the  houses  and  highways 
and  by-ways  of  the  town  and  neighborhood.  He  re- 
vived an  old  society  for  distributing  tracts,  and  did 
the  work  of  tract-distribution  himself  most  effectu- 
ally. His  addresses  in  the  Sunday-school  were  so  deep- 
ly instructive,  so  full  of  love,  and  so  attractive  in 
manner,  that  the  children  were  not  only  delighted, 
but  they  carried  home  the  report  of  what  they  had 
heard ;  and  soon  the  vestry  of  tlie  Independent 
Chapel  was  filled  with  parents  and  children,  who 
gathered  to  hear  the  addresses  of  the  young  usher, 
whose  words  were  so  full  of  interest,  so  full  of  fire 
and  love. 

At  one  of  the  examinations  of  the  school,  Mr. 
Spurgeon  had  consented  to  give  an  address  on 
missions.  It  was  a  public  occasion,  and  in  the  au- 
dience was  a  clero'vman.  Durino-  the  examination 
the  clergyman  heard  of  the  death  of  his  gardener, 
and  at  once  left  for  home ;  but  while  on  his  way  he 
began  to  reason  with  himself  thus :    "  The  gardener 


Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeon.  49 

is  dead  ;  I  cannot  restore  his  life ;  I  will  return  and 
hear  what  the  young  usher  has  to  say  on  missions." 
He  returned,  heard  the  address,  and  showed  his 
approval  by  presenting  the  young  speaker  with  a 
sovereign,  —  an  act  this  which  conferred  honor 
alike  on  the  giver  and  the  recipient. 

While  residing  at  Newmarket  Mr.  Spurgeon  com- 
peted for  a  prize  offered  by  Mr.  Arthur  Morley, 
of  Nottingham,  cousin  to  Mr.  Samuel  Morley,  M.  P., 
for  the  best  essay  on  Popery.  He  did  not  secure 
the  prize,  but  the  adjudicator,  the  late  Rev.  George 
Smith,  D.D.,  of  Poplar,  sent  him  an  encouraging 
letter,  and  a  present  of  money  from  Mr.  Morley,  in 
the  hope  that  he  would  employ  his  talents  for  the 
public  good.  The  manuscript  has  never  been  pub- 
lished, but  it  has  been  bound,  and  bears  the  endorse- 
ment, "  Written  by  a  boy  under  sixteen  years  of  age." 

At  the  close  of  the  one  eventful  year  which  he 
spent  at  Newmarket  Mr.  Spurgeon  removed  to 
Cambridge,  where  his  former  friend,  Mr.  Henry 
Leeding,  had  opened  a  school  for  young  gentlemen. 
Lighter  duties,  greater  comforts,  and  more  time  at 
his  own  disposal,  left  room  for  advance  in  all  his 
studies. 

The  Baptist  Church  in  St.  Andrew's  Street, 
Cambridge,  has  had  several  distiiiguished  pastors. 
The  famous  Robert  Robinson,  author  of  well- 
known  standard  works,  and  writer  of  the  hymns 
beginning,  — 


50  Life  of  Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeon. 

"  Come,  thou  fouut  of  every  blessing/' 

and 

"  Mighty  God !  while  angels  bless  thee," 

ranks  first  in  order  of  time.  Then  followed  the 
more  famous  Robert  Hall,  and  in  later  times,  Rev. 
William  Robinson,  who  commenced  his  ministry  in 
1852. 

On  taking  up  his  residence  in  Cambridge  Mr. 
Spurgeon  at  once  identified  himself  with  St.  Andrew's 
Street  Church.  Before  long  he  became  a  member  of 
the  society,  originated  by  Robert  Hall,  entitled  "  The 
Lay  Preachers'  Association."  His  reputation  as  a 
public  speaker  must  have  secured  him  admittance, 
as  he  was  still  only  a  youth.  The  fact  is  that  his 
attempts  at  public  edification  had  awakened  in  his 
mind  a  desire  to  devote  himself  to  the  work  of  God 
in  a  public  way ;  and  others  had  already  perceived 
that  the  Lord  had  called  him  to  preach  the  gospel. 
The  story  of  his  first  sermon  must  have  a  chapter 
by  itself,  as  it  marks  so  important  an  epoch  in  Mr. 
Spurgeon's  career. 


CHAPTER   YI. 

MR.    SPURGEON'S   first   SERMON. 

A  MINISTER'S  first  essay  at  preaching  is  often- 
times made  under  peculiar  and  unexpected 
circumstances.  It  was  so  with  the  youthful  Spur- 
geon.  He  had  been  asked  to  go  to  the  village  of 
Teversham,  four  miles  from  Cambridge,  to  accompany 
a  friend  whom  he  supposed  to  be  the  preacher  for  the 
evening.  On  the  way  Mr.  Spurgeon  said,  "I  trust 
God  will  bless  your  labors  to-night."  "  My  labors  ? " 
said  he,  "  Oh !  dear,  I  never  preached  in  my  life ;  I 
never  thought  of  doing  such  a  thing.  I  was  asked 
to  walk  with  you^  and  I  sincerely  hope  God  will 
bless  you  in  your  preaching."  "Nay!"  said  young 
Spurgeon,  "  but  I  never  preached,  and  I  don't  know 
that  I  could  do  anything  of  the  sort."  They  walked 
together  till  they  came  to  the  place,  "  my  inmost 
soul  being  all  in  a  tremble,"  says  Mr.  Spurgeon,  "  as 
to  what  would  happen.  When  we  found  the  congre- 
gation assembled,  and  no  one  else  there  to  speak 
of  Jesus,  though  I  was  only  sixteen  years  of  age,  as 
I  found  that  I  was  expected  to  preach,  I  did  preach ; 


52  Life  of  Pastor   C.  H.  Spnrgeon. 

and  the  text  was, '  Unto  you  therefore  which  believe, 
he  is  precious '  (1  Peter  ii.  7)." 

This  event  took  place  in  1850,  and  now,  after  an 
interval  of  more  than  forty  years,  what  have  we  ? 
Thirty-seven  volumes  of  sermons,  a  host  of  books,  in 
large  and  small  volumes,  a  multitude  of  booklets  and 
tracts,  and  all  having  a  world-wide  circulation.  It 
has  been  a  wonderful  stride  from  the  cottage  at 
Teversham  to  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle  and  all 
its  surroundino's. 

We  learn  from  a  gentleman  who  heard  that  first 
sermon  that  it  was  full  of  promise,  and  that  the 
youth,  who  wore  a  round  jacket,  and  a  broad,  turn- 
down, white  collar,  preached,  prayed,  and  expounded 
the  Word  with  much  power  and  effect. 

From  another  person,  an  aged  and  experienced 
Christian,  we  gather  that  his  early  addresses  were  very 
instructive,  often  including  illustrations  derived  from 
history,  geography,  astronomy,  and  other  branches 
of  science.  In  fact,  he  made  good  use  of  his 
stores  of  learning,  and  other  acquisitions.  He  soon 
became  regularly  employed  of  an  evening  in  one  or 
other  of  the  thirteen  village  stations  supplied  by 
the  Lay  Preachers'  Association.  One  of  these  was 
Waterbeach,  where  especially  his  preaching  was 
blessed  to  conversion  and  edification.  The  little 
church  in  this  village  was  without  a  pastor,  and  the 
people  were  not  slow  in  urging  the  young  preacher 
to  become  their  regular  minister.     A  great  blessing 


54  Life  and  Labors  of 

attended  him  here,  so  that  in  a  few  months  the 
membership  rose  from  forty  to  nearly  a  hundred. 
His  popularity  grew  rapidly,  and  invitations  came 
in  from  many  places  asking  him  to  preach  special 
sermons.  The  lift  which  his  short  pastorate  gave 
the  cause  at  Waterbeach  has  had  the  effect  of  per- 
manently raising  it,  and  it  has  flourished  more  or 
less  ever  since. 

One  of  the  first  ministers  to  take  the  young 
preacher  by  the  hand  was  Cornelius  Elven,  of  Bury- 
St.-Edmund's,  a  man  of  mark  in  all  the  region  round 
about  his  own  more  immediate  sphere.  He  went  to 
preach  the  anniversary  sermons  at  Waterbeach  in  1852. 

"  We  met  at  the  station,"  says  Mr.  Spurgeon,  "  as  he 
alighted  from  a  third-class  carriage,  which  he  had 
chosen  in  order  to  put  the  friends  to  the  least  possible 
expense  for  his  travelling.  His  bulk  was  stupendous, 
and  one  soon  saw  that  his  heart  was  as  large  in 
proportion  as  his  body.  He  gave  us  much  sage  and 
holy  advice  during  the  visit,  which  came  to  us  with 
much  the  same  weight  as  Paul's  words  came  to 
Timothy.  He  bade  us  study  hard,  and  keep  abreast 
of  the  foremost  Christians  in  our  little  church,  add- 
ing as  a  reason,  that  '  if  these  men,  either  in  their 
knowledge  of  Scripture  or  their  power  to  edify  the 
people,  once  outstrip  you,  the  temptation  will  arise 
amono;  them  to  be  dissatisfied  with  vour  min- 
istry,  and,  however  good  they  are,  they  will  feel 
their  superiority,  and  others  will  perceive  it  too,  and 


Pa%toT   C.  H.  Spurgeon. 


66 


then  your  place  in  the  church  will  become  difficult 
to  hold.'  His  sermons  were  very  homely,  and  pre- 
eminently practical.  He  told  anecdotes  of  the  use- 
fulness of  addressing  individuals  one  by  one  about 
their  souls." 

Mr.  Elven  delighted  to  tell  the  story  of  this  visit. 
In  his  diary  that  evening  he  wrote :  "  Have  preached 
to-day  at  Waterbeach  for  C.  H.  Spurgeon.     He  is  a 


THE    OLD    CHAPEL  AT    WATEKBEACH,    BUEXED    IX   1866. 

rising  star.  He  will  one  day  make  his  mark  upon  the 
denomination."  Mr.  Elven  used  to  say:  "That  day 
I  preached  for  Mr.  Spurgeon.  and  he  gave  out  the 
hymns  for  me ;  I  should  be  very  glad  to  give  out  the 
hymns  for  him  if  he  would  preach  for  me."  The 
older  minister's  wish  was  realized,  as  his  prophecy 
has  been  abundantly  fulfilled. 


06  Life  of  Pastor  0.  IT.  S pur g eon. 

We  give  an  incident  of  Mr.  Spiirgeon's  brief 
ministry  at  Waterbeacli :  One  day  a  gentleman, 
who  was  then  mayor  of  Cambridge,  asked  the 
youthful  preacher  if  he  really  had  told  his  people 
that  if  a  thief  got  to  heaven  he  would  pick  the 
angels'  pockets.  "  Yes,  sir,"  replied  Mr.  Spurgeon,  "I 
told  them  that  if  it  were  possible  for  an  ungodly 
man  to  go  to  heaven  without  having  his  nature 
changed,  he  would  be  none  the  better  for  being 
there ;  and  then,  by  way  of  illustration,  I  said  that 
were  a  thief  to  get  in  he  would  remain  a  thief  still, 
and  go  round  the  place  picking  the  angels'  pockets." 
"  But,  my  dear  young  friend,  don't  you  know  that  the 
angels  have  no  pockets  ? "  "  No,  sir ;  but  I  am  glad 
to  be  assured  of  the  fact  from  a  gentleman  who  does 
know.     I  will  set  it  all  right." 

The  following  IMonday  morning  Mr.  Spurgeon 
walked  into  Mr.  B.'s  shop,  and  said,  "  I  set  that  mat- 
ter right  yesterday,  sir."  "What  matter?"  "Why, 
about  the  angels' pockets  1 "  "What  did  you  say?" 
"  Well,  I  told  the  people  I  was  sorry  to  say  that 
I  had  made  a  mistake  the  last  time  I  preached ; 
but  that  I  had  met  a  gentleman  —  the  mayor  of 
Cambridge — who  had  told  me  that  the  angels  had 
no  pockets,  so  that  I  must  correct  what  I  had  said,  as  I 
did  not  want  anvbodv  to  2:0  awav  with  a  false  notion 
about  heaven.  I  would  therefore  say  that,  if  a  thief  got 
among  the  angels  without  having  his  nature  changed, 
he  would  steal  the  feathers  out  of  their  wings." 


CHAPTER  VII. 


MR  SPURGEON  S  PROPOSED  COLLEGE  TRAINING. 


SOON  after  Mr.  Spurgeon  was  settled  at  Water- 
beach  he  was  strongly  advised,  by  his  father  and 
other  friends,  to  enter  Stepney  (now  Regent's  Park)  Col- 
lege, to  prepare  himself  more  fully  for  the  ministry. 
Knowing  that  learning  is  never  an  encumbrance,  and 
is  often  a  great  means  of  usefulness,  he  felt  inclined 
to  avail  himself  of  the  opportunity  of  attaining  it, 
although  he  was  of  the  opinion  that  he  might  be  use- 
ful without  a  college  training. 

"  I  consented,"  he  says,  "  to  the  opinion  of  friends, 
that  I  should  be  more  useful  with  it.  Dr.  Angus,  the 
tutor  of  the  college,  visited  Cambridge,  where  I  then 
resided,  and  it  was  arranged  that  we  should  meet  at 
the  house  of  Mr.  Macmillan,  the  publisher.  Thinking 
and  praying  over  the  matter,  I  entered  the  house  at 
exactly  the  time  appointed,  and  was  shown  into  a 
room,  where  I  waited  patiently  for  a  couple  of  hours, 
feeling  too  mucli  impressed  with  my  own  insignifi- 
cance, and  the  greatness  of  the  tutor  from  London, 


58  lAfe  and  Labors  of 

to  venture  to  ring  the  bell,  and  inquire  the  cause  of 
the  unreasonably  long  delay. 

"  At  last,  patience  having  had  lier  perfect  work,  the 
bell  was  set  in  motion,  and  on  the  arrival  of  the  ser- 
vant, the  waiting  young  man  of  eighteen  was  in- 
formed that  the  doctor  had  tarried  in  another  room, 
and  could  stay  no  longer,  so  had  gone  off  by  train  to 
London.  The  stupid  girl  had  given  no  information 
to  the  family  that  any  one  had  called,  and  he  had  been 
shown  into  the  drawing-room ;  consequently  the 
meeting  never  came  about,  although  designed  by 
both  parties.  I  was  not  a  little  disappointed  at  the 
moment;  but  have  a  thousand  times  since  then 
thanked  the  Lord  very  heartily  for  the  strange 
providence  which  forced  my  steps  into  another  and 
far  better  path." 

This  subject  is  a  matter  of  such  importance,  and 
involved  so  much  in  his  case,  though  it  ought  not  to 
be  construed  into  a  rule  in  other  and  ordinary  cases, 
that  we  append  some  further  remarks  from  Mr.  Spur- 
geon's  own  pen :  — 

''  Still  holding  the  idea  of  entering  the  collegiate 
institution,  I  thought  of  writing  and  making  an  im- 
mediate application ;  but  this  was  not  to  be.  That 
afternoon,  having  to  preach  at  a  village  station,  I 
walked  slowly  in  a  meditative  frame  of  mind  over 
Midsummer  Common  to  the  little  wooden  bridge 
which  leads  to  Chesterton,  and  in  the  midst  of  the 
Common  I  was  startled  by  what  seemed  to  me  a  loud 


Pastor   C,  H.  Spuryeon.  59 

voice,  but  which  may  have  been  a  singular  illusion. 
Whichever  it  was,  the  impression  it  made  on  my  mind 
was  most  vivid ;  I  seemed  very  distinctly  to  hear  the 
words,  '  Seekest  thou  great  things  for  thyself  ?  Seek 
them  not ! '  This  led  me  to  look  at  my  position  from 
a  different  point  of  view,  and  to  challenge  my  motives 
and  intentions.  I  remembered  my  poor,  but  loving 
people  to  whom  I  ministered,  and  the  souls  which  had 
been  given  me  in  my  humble  charge ;  and  although 
at  that  time  I  anticipated  obscurity  and  poverty  as 
the  result  of  the  resolve,  yet  I  did  there  and  then 
renounce  the  offer  of  collegiate  instruction,  determin- 
ing to  abide,  for  a  season  at  least,  with  my  people, 
and  to  remain  preaching  the  Word  as  long  as  I  had 
strength  to  do  it.  Had  it  not  been  for  those  words 
I  had  not  been  where  I  am  now.  Although  the  ephod 
is  no  longer  worn  by  the  ministering  priest,  the  Lord 
guides  His  people  by  His  wisdom,  and  orders  all 
their  paths  in  love ;  and  in  times  of  perplexity,  by 
ways  mysterious  and  remarkable.  He  says  to  them, 
'  This  is  the  way  ;    walk  ye  in  it.' " 

Mr.  Spurgeon  has  such  facility  for  turning  every- 
thing to  account,  that  it  is  not  surprising  that  this 
incident  was  made  the  basis  of  an  address  to  the 
students  of  the  Pastors'  College,  and  published  in 
"  The  Sword  and  the  Trowel "  for  1891,  under  the 
title  of  "A  Reminiscence  and  a  Warning." 

That  the  question  of  college  training,  or  no  col- 
lege training,  was  not  treated  lightly,  but  anxiously 


60  Life  and  Labors  of 

weighed  and  prayed  over,  is  manifest  in  some  of  his 
letters  written  at  the  time.  In  one  to  his  father, 
dated  9th  March,  1852,  he  says, "  I  have  had  all  along 
an  aversion  to  college,  and  nothing  but  a  feeling  that 
I  must  not  consult  myself,  but  Jesus,  could  have  made 
me  think  of  it.  It  appears  to  my  friends  at  Cambridge 
that  it  is  my  duty  to  remain  with  my  dear  people  at 
Waterbeach ;  so  says  the  church  there,  unanimously, 
and  so  say  three  of  our  deacons  at  Cambridge." 

Writing  to  his  mother  in  November  of  the  same 
year,  he  says,  "  I  am  more  and  more  glad  that  I 
never  went  to  college.  God  sends  such  sunshine  on 
my  path,  such  smiles  of  grace,  that  I  cannot  regret 
if  I  have  forfeited  all  my  prospects  for  it.  I  am 
conscious  I  held  back  from  love  to  God  and  His 
cause ;  and  I  had  rather  be  poor  in  His  service  than 
rich  in  my  own.  I  have  all  that  heart  can  wish  for  ; 
yea,  God  giveth  more  than  my  desire.  My  congrega- 
tion is  as  great  and  as  loving  as  ever." 

Before  we  pass  on  from  events  that  happened  dur- 
ing his  residence  at  Cambridge,  it  may  be  well  to 
relate  a  characteristic  anecdote  which  was  told  to  the 
writer  by  one  of  the  deacons  of  St.  Andrew's  Street 
Baptist  Church.  The  communion  service  had  been 
observed  in  the  chapel  one  Sunday  afternoon,  and 
the  communicants  were  passing  out.  Sitting  in  tlie 
same  seat  with  the  youthful  member  during  the 
service  was  a  gentleman  somewhat  advanced  in 
years.     There  seemed  rather  too  much  decorum  for 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  61 

the  warm-hearted  youth,  and  he  felt  determined  to 
break  through  it,  by  speaking  to  the  gentleman. 
He  responded,  but  said,  "  1  do  not  know  you."  "  Not 
know  me  ?  "  said  the  youth ;  "  why,  I  am  one  of  your 
brethren ;  at  least,  if  you  mean  what  we  have  been 
doing  by  communing  together  as  fellow-disciples." 
The  gentleman  was  quite  captivated  by  the  young 
man's  sincerity  and  simplicity,  and  they  remain  fast 
friends  until  the  present  day.  We  believe  that  it  was 
at  the  house  of  this  gentleman  that  Mr.  Spurgeon 
stayed  when  he  visited  Cambridge  in  1870,  during 
the  session  of  the  Baptist  Union,  and  preached  on 
"  Parker's  Piece."  The  throng,  consisting  of  several 
thousands,  was  so  great,  and  the  desire  to  speak  to 
the  preacher  so  general,  that  it  was  necessary  for  a 
number  of  his  more  intimate  friends  to  make  a  circle 
with  their  joined  hands,  in  the  middle  of  which  he 
walked  until  he  found  refuge  in  the  house  of  his  ven- 
erable friend  by  passing  through  the  garden  door. 


CHAPTER   YIIL 


MR.  SPURGEON  S  CALL  TO  LONDON. 


A  T  Cambridge  there  is  a  very  efficient  Sunday 
-^-^  School  Union,  and  at  its  anniversary  in 
1853  Mr.  Spurgeon  was  called  upon  to  speak.  This 
simple,  and,  as  it  were,  casual  incident,  was  an  im- 
portant link  in  a  chain  of  events  which  led  to  great 
results.  There  was  a  gentleman  present,  worthy  old 
Mr.  Gould,  a  deacon  of  the  Baptist  Church  at  Lough- 
ton,  Essex,  who  felt  there  was  something  unusual  in 
the  youthful  speaker ;  and  what  he  heard  of  his 
preaching  at  Waterbeach,  and  elsewhere,  deepened 
and  confirmed  the  impressions  made. 

Shortly  after  this,  Mr.  Gould  met,  in  London,  his 
friend,  Mr.  Thomas  Olney,  one  of  the  deacons  of 
the  church  meeting  in  New  Park  Street  Chapel, 
Southwark,  who  bemoaned  the  low  estate  of  that 
church,  which  had  been  one  of  the  largest,  richest, 
and  most  influential  of  all  the  London  Baptist 
churches.  Mr.  Gould  spoke  of  the  youthful  Cam- 
bridgeshire preacher,  and  suggested  that  he  might 
be  the  means  of  reviving  the  decayed  interest  at  New 


Life  of  Pastor  0.  H.  Spurgeon. 


63 


Park  Street.  The  two  friends  separated,  Mr.  Olney 
not  being  deeply  impressed  in  favor  of  his  friend's 
suggestion.  Meanwhile  things  grew  worse  and  worse 
at  New  Park  Street.  The  chapel  was  badly  placed, 
and  the  neighborhood  was  fast  deteriorating,  or 
being  changed  into  a  place  for  warehouses  rather 
than  dwellino-houses. 


NEW    PARK    STREET    CHAPEL. 

After  a  time  the  two  'deacons  met  again,  and  Mr. 
Gould  renewed  his  suggestion  respecting  the  young 
Waterbeach  pastor,  and  this  time  made  a  deeper  im- 
pression on  good  Thomas  Olney.  There  might  be  a 
gleam  of  hope  for  the  cause  in  the  suggestions  made. 
Thomas  Olney  mentioned  the  matter  to  his  fellow- 
deacon,  James  Low,  and  they  consulted  with  their 
brethren  in  office,  as  the  result  of  which  a  corres- 
pondence  was    opened   between    Mr.   Low   and    the 


64  Life  and  Labors  of 

Waterbeach  pastor,  which  led  to  the  latter  receiv- 
ing an  invitation  to  preach  on  a  certain  Sunday  in 
the  large  but  almost  empty  chapel.  The  pastorate 
had  been  vacant  some  three  months  or  more,  and 
things  were  gloomy  in  the  extreme.  As  we  hope  to 
devote  a  short  chapter  to  the  history  of  this  memo- 
rable church,  we  shall  confine  ourselves  now  to 
matters  concerning  Mr.  Spurgeon's  accession  to  the 
pastorate,  and  its  wonderful  results. 

Mr.  Spurgeon's  first  Sunday  in  London  was  in 
December,  1853.  Everything  wore  the  appearance 
of  gloom;  virtually,  there  was  no  hopeful  inspira- 
tion, —  a  gloomy  month,  in  a  gloomy  neighborhood, 
in  a  chapel  seating  twelve  hundred,  where  hardly  two 
hundred  were  assembled.  The  preacher  stayed  him- 
self upon  the  Lord,  and  preached.  His  first  text  was 
well  chosen,  —  a  more  suitable  one  could  not  have 
been  selected ;  and  it  has  had  a  wonderful  illustra- 
tion in  the  whole  of  his  subsequent  ministry.  "  Every 
good  gift  and  every  perfect  gift  is  from  above,  and 
Cometh  down  from  the  Father  of  lights,  with  whom 
is  no  variableness,  neither  shadow  of  turning" 
(James  i.  17).  He  spoke  with  great  freedom  and 
boldness,  as  one  who  believed  what  he  preached,  and 
that  he  had  a  message  from  God.  The  result  was 
that  some  were  disappointed  ;  others  resolved  to 
oppose,  and  did  oppose  ;  but  a  large  majority  de- 
sired to  hear  him  ao'ain.  The  evenino;  conorreo-ation 
showed  that  the  mornina-  sermon  had  fallen  on  at- 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  65 

tentive  and  willing  ears.  The  number  of  bearers 
was  greatly  increased,  —  partly  from  the  youth's  un- 
usual style,  and  partly  from  the  earnestness  and 
faithfulness  of  the  preacher. 

It  was  on  that  first  Sunday  that  he  found  a  suitable 
companion  and  friend  in  Mr.  Joseph  Passmore,  who 
has  from  that  day  been  closely  associated  with  him 
as  a  brother  and  fellow-soldier,  an  elder  and  a  deacon, 
and  as  one  of  the  firm  which,  from  the  beginning, 
has  published  his  sermons  and  other  works. 

Mr.  Spurgeon  was  invited  to  repeat  his  visit,  which 
he  did,  on  the  first,  third,  and  fifth  Lord's-days  in 
January,  1854 ;  but  before  the  last  of  these  Sabbaths 
he  had  received  an  invitation,  dated  25th  January,  to 
occupy  the  pulpit  for  six  monlhs  on  probation.  Mr. 
Spurgeon 's  reply  to  this  invitation  is  characteristic  of 
the  man,  though,  at  the  time,  he  wanted  some  months 
of  twenty  years  of  age.  It  was  worthy  of  a  man  of 
long  experience,  and  displayed  alike  that  distrust  in 
self,  that  plain  common-sense  and  sagacity,  and  that 
simple  faith  in  the  Lord's  leading  and  guidance,  which 
have  marked  his  entire  course. 

No.  60  Park  Street,  Cambridge, 
January  27 th,  1854. 
To  James  Low,  Esq.  •: 

My  dear  Sir,  —  I  cannot  help  feeling  intense  gratification  at 
the  unanimity  of  the  church  at  New  Park  Street  in  relation  to 
their  invitation  to  me.  Had  I  been  uncomfortable  in  my  present 
situation  I  should  have  felt  unmixed  pleasure  at  the  prospect 
Providence  seems  to  open  up  before  me  ;  but,  having  a  devoted 
and  loving  people,  I  feel  I  know  not  how. 

5 


66  Life  and  Labors  of 

One  thing  I  know,  namely,  that  I  must  soon  be  severed  from 
them  bv  necessity,  for  they  do  not  raise  sufficient  to  maintain  me 
in  comfort.  Had  they  done  so  I  should  have  turned  a  deaf  ear 
to  any  request  to  leave  them,  at  least  for  the  present.  But  now 
my  heavenly  Father  drives  me  forth  from  this  little  Garden  of 
Eden,  and  while  I  see  that  I  must  go  out,  I  leave  it  with  reluc- 
tance, and  tremble  to  tread  the  unknown  land  before  me. 

When  I  first  ventured  to  preach  at  Waterbeach  I  only  accepted 
an  invitation  for  three  months,  on  the  condition  that  if  in  that 
time  1  should  see  good  reason  for  leaving,  or  they,  on  their  part, 
should  wish  for  it,  I  should  be  at  liberty  to  cease  supplying,  or 
they  should  have  the  same  power  to  request  me  to  do  so,  before 
the  expiration  of  the  time, 

"With  regard  to  a  six  months'  invitation  from  you,  I  have  no 
objection  to  the  length  of  time,  but  rather  approve  of  the  pru- 
dence of  the  church  in  wishing  to  have  one  so  young  as  myself 
on  an  extended  period  of  approbation.  But  I  write  after  well 
weighing  the  matter  when  I  say  positively  that  I  cannot,  I  dare 
not,  accept  an  unqualified  invitation  for  so  long  a  time.  My 
objection  is  not  to  the  length  of  time  of  probation,  but  it  ill 
becomes  a  youth  to  promise  to  preach  to  a  London  congrega- 
tion so  long,  until  he  knows  them  and  they  know  him.  I  would 
engage  to  supply  for  three  months  of  that  time,  and  then,  should 
the  congregation  fail,  or  the  church  disagree,  I  would  reserve 
to  myself  liberty,  without  breach  of  engagement,  to  retire  ; 
and  you  would,  on  your  part,  have  the  right  to  dismiss  me 
without  seeming  to  treat  me  ill.  Should  I  see  no  reason  for 
so  doing,  and  the  church  still  retain  their  wish  for  nie,  I  can 
remain  the  other  three  months,  either  with  or  without  the  for- 
mality of  a  further  invitation ;  but  even  during  the  second  three 
months,  I  should  not  like  to  regard  mj^self  as  a  fixture,  in  case 
of  ill  success,  but  would  only  be  a  suj^ph^,  liable  to  a  fortnight's 
dismissal  or  resignation. 

Perhaps  this  is  not  business-like  —  I  do  not  know  ;  but  this 
is  the  course  I  should  prefer,  if  it  would  be  agreeable  to  the 
church.  Enthusiasm  and  popularity  are  often  like  the  crackling 
of  thorns,  and  soon  expire.  I  do  not  wish  to  be  a  hindrance,  if 
I  cannot  be  a  help. 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  67 

With  regard  to  coming  at  once,  I  think  I  must  not.  My  own 
deacons  just  hint  that  I  ought  to  finish  the  quarter  here,  though 
by  "ought"  they  simply  mean,  Pray  do  so  if  you  can.  This 
would  be  too  long  a  delay.  I  wish  to  help  them  until  they  can 
get  supplies,  which  is  only  to  be  done  with  great  difficulty,  and 
as  I  have  given  you  four  Sabbaths,  I  hope  you  will  allow  me  to 
give  them  four  in  return.  I  would  give  them  the  first  and  second 
Sabbaths  in  February,  and  two  more  in  a  month  or  six  w^eeks' 
time.  I  owe  them  much  for  their  kindness,  although  they  insist 
that  the  debt  lies  on  their  side.  Some  of  them  hope,  and  almost 
pray,  that  you  may  be  tired  of  me  in  three  months,  so  that  I  may 
be  again  sent  back  to  them. 

Thus,  my  dear  sir,  I  have  honestly  poured  out  my  heart  to 
you.  You  are  too  kind.  You  will  excuse  me  if  I  err,  for  I  wish 
to  do  right  to  you,  to  my  people,  and  to  all,  as  being  not  mine 
own,  but  bought  with  a  price. 

I  respect  the  honesty  and  boldness  of  the  small  minority,  and 
only  wonder  that  the  number  was  not  greater.  I  pray  God  that 
if  He  does  not  see  fit  that  I  should  remain  with  you,  the  majority 
may  be  quite  as  much  the  other  way  at  the  end  of  six  months,  so 
that  I  may  never  divide  you  into  parties. 

Pecuniary  matters  I  am  well  satisfied  with.  And  now"  one 
thing  is  clue  to  every  minister,  and  I  pray  you  to  remind  the 
church  of  it,  — namely,  that  in  private,  as  well  as  in  public,  they 
must  all  wrestle  in  prayer  to  God  that  I  may  be  sustained  in  the 
great  work. 

I   am,   with   best   wishes    for   your  health,   and  the   greatest 

respect, 

Yours  truly, 

C.  H.  Spurgeon. 

Looking  back  to  the  earliest  year  of  Mr.  Spurgeon's 
ministry  at  New  Park  Street,  we  well  remember  what 
charges  of  audacity,  impudence,  overweening  conceit, 
self-assertion,  and  such  like  things, — improper  enough 
in  any  man,  but  especially  in  a  young  man,  —  were 


68  Life  and  Labors  of 

brought  against  him,  and  hurled  at  him,  like  clods 
and  stones,  instead  of  rotten  eggs  and  gutter  garbage. 
This  was  done,  not  alone  by  newspaper  writers,  but 
by  professing  Christians,  and  even  ministers.  So 
they  misunderstood  his  boldness  and  faithfulness  in 
preaching  the  gospel.  But  what  trace  is  there  in  the 
letter  we  have  just  quoted  of  anything  of  the  kind  ? 
No  young  man,  however  small  his  gifts,  and  however 
limited  his  resources  as  a  preacher,  could  have  writ- 
ten more  humbly,  and  with  more  of  healthy  self-dis- 
trust, and  at  the  same  time  with  greater  frankness 
and  straightforward  honesty.  The  cautious  letter  was 
well  received,  and  the  honesty  of  the  writer  was  well 
rewarded.  Unexpected  results  followed  his  second 
visit.  The  spacious  chapel,  notwithstanding  many 
drawbacks,  and,  not  least,  its  bad  situation,  and  the 
fact  that  the  nearest  way  to  it  from  the  city  was  over 
Southwark  Bridge,  which  involved  a  toll,  was  rapidly 
filling,  the  prayer-meetings  were  full  of  power,  and 
conversion  work  was  going  on.  There  was  a  strong 
feeling  at  once  to  take  steps  to  secure  his  election  to 
the  pastorate.  Accordingly,  a  requisition  for  a  spe- 
cial church-meeting  was  signed  by  fifty  of  the  male 
members,  and  sent  in  to  the  deacons  on  12th  April. 
A  meeting  was  held  a  week  later,  when  the  following 
resolution  was  passed  unanimously  :  — 

"  That  we  tender  our  brother,  Rev.  C.  H.  Spurgeon, 
a  most  cordial  and  affectionate  invitation  forthwith, 
to  become  pastor  of  this  church,  and  we  pray  that 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeo7i.  69 

the  result  of  his  services  may  be  owned  of  God,  with 
an  out-pouriug  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  a  revival  of 
religion  in  our  midst ;  that  it  may  be  fruitful  in  the 
conversion  of  sinners,  and  in  the  edification  of  those 
that  believe." 

To  this  invitation  there  could  be  but  one  reply : 
the  hand  of  the  Lord  and  the  will  of  the  Lord 
were  so  manifest  that  they  could  not  be  mistaken. 
Accordingly,  Mr.  Spurgeon  wrote  :  — 

75  Dover  Road,  Borough, 
AiJril  2Slh,  1854. 

To  THE  Baptist  Church  of  Christ  worshipping  in  New 
Park  Street  Chapel,  Southwark. 

Dearly  beloved  in  Christ  Jesus,  —  I  have  received  your 
■unanimous  invitation,  as  contained  in  a  resolution  passed  by  you 
on  the  19th  inst.,  desiring  me  to  accept  the  pastorate  among  you. 
No  lengthened  reply  is  required  ;  there  is  but  one  answer  to  so 
lovino-  and  cordial  an  invitation.  I  accept  it.  I  have  not  been 
perplexed  as  to  what  my  reply  shall  be,  for  many  things  constrain 
me  thus  to  answer. 

I  sought  not  to  come  to  you,  for  I  was  the  minister  of  an  ob- 
scure but  affectionate  people  ;  I  never  solicited  advancement. 
The  first  note  of  invitation  from  your  deacons  came  to  me  quite 
unlooked-for,  and  I  trembled  at  the  idea  of  preaching  in  London. 
I  could  not  understand  how  it  came  about,  and  even  now  I  am 
filled  with  [astonishment  at  the  wondrous  Providence.  I  would 
wish  to  give  myself  into  the  hands  of  our  covenant  God,  whose 
wisdom  directs  all  things.  He  shall  choose  for  me ;  and  so  far 
as  I  can  judge,  this  is  His  choice. 

I  feel  it  to  be  a  high  honor  to  be  the  pastor  of  a  people  who 
can  mention  glorious  names  as  my  predecessors,  and  I  entreat 
of  you  to  remember  me  in  prayer,  that  I  may  realize  the  solemn 
responsibility  of  my  trust.  Remember  my  youth  and  inex- 
perience ;    pray    that    these    may    not    hinder    my    usefulness. 


70  Life  of  Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon. 

I  trust  also  that  the  remembrance  of  these  may  lead  you  to 
forgive  the  mistakes  I  may  make,  or  unguarded  words  I  may 
utter. 

Blessed  be  the  name  of  the  Most  High !  if  He  has  called  me 
to  this  office  He  will  support  me  in  it ;  otherwise  how  should  a 
child  —  a  youth  —  have  the  presumption  thus  to  attempt  a  work 
which  filled  the  heart  and  hands  of  Jesus  ?  Your  kindness  to 
me  has  been  very  great,  and  my  heart  is  knit  unto  you.  I  fear 
not  your  steadfastness,  I  fear  my  own.  The  gospel,  I  believe, 
enables  me  to  venture  great  things,  and  by  faith  I  venture  this. 
I  ask  your  co-operation  in  every  good  work  ;  in  visiting  the  sick, 
in  bringing  in  inquirers,  and  in  mutual  edification. 

Oh  that  I  may  be  no  injury  to  you,  but  a  lasting  benefit! 
I  have  no  more  to  say,  only  this,  that  if  I  have  expressed  myself 
in  these  few  words  in  a  manner  unbecoming  my  youth  and  inex- 
perience, you  will  not  impute  it  to  arrogance,  but  forgive  my 
mistake. 

And  now,  commending  you  to  our  covenant-keeping  God,  the 

Triune  Jehovah, 
I  am. 

Yours  to  serve  in  the  Gospel, 

C.  H.  Spurgeon. 

Before  he  was  twenty  years  of  age  this  young  man 
was  therefore  installed  as  pastor  of  a  church  some 
of  whose  previous  pastors  had  been  among  the  most 
learned,  useful,  and  honored  of  their  day. 

At  this  point  it  seems  necessary  to  give  a  short 
sketch  of  the  earlier  history  of  the  church  which  now 
worships  at  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle,  with  brief 
notes  of  some  of  its  distinguished  pastors. 


CHAPTER  IX. 


THE  CHURCH  AT  THE  METROPOLITAN  TABERNACLE. 


IN  the  earlier  part  of  the  seventeenth  century  there 
were  several  Baptist  societies  meeting  in  private 
houses  in  the  borough  of  Southwark.  From  one  of 
these  this  church  took  its  rise,  having  for  its  first 
pastor,  Mr.  William  Rider,  who  settled  in  1652,  and 
continued  with  the  people,  in  all  probability,  until  his 
death ;  for  at  the  settlement  of  the  next  pastor  Mr. 
Rider  had  been  dead  some  time.  The  church  was 
small  in  numbers,  but  had  the  reputation  of  being 
composed  of  men  of  solid  judgment,  deep  knowledge, 
and  religious  stability,  and  some  of  them  were  in 
easy  circumstances.  The  church,  hoAvever,  seems  to 
have  had  no  regular  meeting-house,  but  the  members 
assembled  in  private  houses.  This  was  in  the  time 
of  the  Commonwealth,  and  when  the  Presbyterians 
were  in  power,  and  little  liberty  was  enjoyed  by  the 
Baptists. 

The  next  pastor  was  Benjamin  Keach,  who  had 
previously  exercised  his  ministry  at  Winslow,  Bucks. 
He  was  born  in  1640,  baptized  at  fifteen,  and  began 
to  preach  at  eighteen.     In  1668,  when  he  was  twenty- 


72 


Life  and  Labors  of 


eight  years  of  age,  he  became  pastor  of  the  church, 
then  meeting  at  Horselydown  (Horse-lie-down).  The 
previous  ten  years  had  been  years  of  bitter  trial  and 


BENJAMIN   KEACH. 

persecution,  under  the  rigorous  laws  of  the  perfidious 
Charles  II.,  whose  minions  outdid  the  king  in  violence 
and  tyranny.     The  little  chapel  where  he  ministered 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spiirgeon. 


T3 


at  Winslow  still  stands,  and  when  the  writer  last 
visited  the  place  was  occupied  by  a  few  of  the  strait- 
est  of  all  Baptists.  A  good  chapel  was  built  there 
under  Mr.  Spurgeon's  auspices  in  1864. 

Mr.  Keach  had  published  a  small  book,  — "  The 


BEXJAMIX    KEACH    IX    THE    PTLLORY. 

Child's  Instructor ;  or  a  New  and  Easy  Primer."  The 
infamous  judge,  executing  equally  infamous  laws,  con- 
demned him  to  prison  for  a  fortnight,  to  stand  in  the 
pillory  in  the  market-place  at  Aylesbury,  with  a  paper 
on  his  head,  "  For  writing,  printing,  and  publishing  a 
schismatical  book,"  etc.     In  addition  to  which  he  was 


74  Life  and  Labors  of 

to  pay  a  fine  of  £20  (equal  to  <£100  now),  find  two 
sureties  for  his  appearance  at  the  next  assize,  recant 
his  doctrines,  and  have  the  book  burned  by  the  hang- 
man before  his  eyes.  The  following  Saturday  he 
stood  in  the  pillory  at  Winslow.  When  in  the  pil- 
lory the  crowd  treated  him  with  respect,  and  instead 
of  hooting  him  and  pelting  him  with  mud  and  rotten 
eggs,  as  was  commonly  done,  they  listened  attentively 
to  his  exhortations.  The  sheriff  was  enraged,  and 
threatened  to  gag  him,  but  he  continued  to  exhort 
the  people  out  of  the  Bible. 

For  four  years  after  these  events  Mr.  Keach  con- 
tinued in  the  country,  preaching  as  he  had  oppor- 
tunity, both  publicly  and  privately,  and  harassed  by 
his  persecutors  continually.  Hoping  to  have  more 
freedom  in  London,  and  withal  better  opportunities 
for  his  work,  he  turned  his  effects  into  money,  and 
made  his  way  with  his  devoted  wife  and  children  to 
the  metropolis.  On  the  journey  the  coach  was  beset 
by  highwaymen,  who  compelled  all  the  passengers  to 
turn  out,  and  then  took  from  them  all  they  could  find 
of  any  value.  Thus  Mr.  Reach  arrived  in  London 
without  money,  and  almost  without  friends.  But  he 
was  known  by  name  and  reputation  to  some  of  the 
leading  Baptists,  and  his  needs  were  supplied.  In 
conjunction  with  the  other  passengers  he  sued  the 
county,  and  recovered  in  due  time  all  he  had  lost. 

Very  shortly,  it  would  appear,  he  became  pastor  of 
the  late  Mr.  Rider's  congregation,  which  still  met  in 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spiirgeoti,  75 

private  houses,  the  appointed  place  from  time  to  time 
being  a  secret  the  members  were  compelled  to  keep 
sacred.  He  commenced  his  pastorate  in  1668,  and 
continued  in  the  same  for  thirty-six  years,  dying  in 
1704.  He  was  the  author  of  many  works,  including 
his  "  Key  to  open  Scripture  Metaphors,"  and  his  book 
"  On  the  Parables,"  which  have  been  republished  in 
our  own  day  at  half  a  guinea  each.  Some  of  his 
works  are  controversial,  but  he  had  the  reputation 
of  being  fair  and  candid  in  the  treatment  of  his 
opponents,  which  was  a  rare  virtue  in  those  days 
of  bigotrv  and  sectarianism,  when  religious  liberty, 
however  plainly  taught  by  ^lilton  and  some  others, 
seldom  guided  the  conduct  of  the  leaders  in  either 
Church  or  State,  and  was  little  understood  by  some 
of  the  most  learned  ministers. 

Mr.  Keach's  immediate  successor  was  Mr.  Benjamin 
Stinton,  his  son-in-law.  He  had  great  natural  gifts, 
and  much  acquired  learning,  and  filled  his  position 
with  acceptance  and  success.  He  originated  the 
Protestant  Dissenters'  Charity  School  in  Horsely- 
down,  and  was  one  of  the  founders  of  the  Particular 
Baptist  Fund.  He  died  suddenly  in  the  forty -third 
year  of  his  age,  having  been  pastor  fourteen  years. 
When  he  was  seized  with  death  he  said  to  his  wife, 
"Jam  going^''  and  laid  himself  down  on  the  bed,  and 
expired. 

Then  followed  the  great  Dr.  Gill.  But  his  settle- 
ment caused  a  separation.     Mr.  Gill  and  his  friends 


76  Life  of  Fast  or   C.  H.  Sjjurgeon. 

withdrew  to  the  schoolroom  of  Mr.  Crosby  (the 
historian  of  the  Baptists),  and  afterwards,  when 
the  other  part}^  vacated  the  old  chapel  in  Goat  Yard 
for  their  new  meeting-house  in  Unicorn  Yard,  Mr.  Gill 
and  his  friends  went  back  to  their  former  home. 

John  Gill  was  born  at  Kettering^  Northampton- 
shire, 23d  November,  1697.  His  father  was  a  mem- 
ber of  a  dissenting  congregation  in  that  town.  He 
was  baptized  at  nineteen,  and  was  soon  called  to 
exercise  his  gifts  as  a  preacher  before  the  chm^cli. 
He  was  little  more  than  twenty-one  when  the  church 
at  Horselydown  invited  him  to  preach  with  a  view 
to  the  pastorate.  He  remained  in  this  office  fifty-one 
years,  during  which  time  he  became  a  voluminous 
author,  and  a  leading  preacher  in  the  denomination, 
in  both  town  and  country.  Many  anecdotes  are  told 
of  him.  He  had  to  do  with  strange  people  some- 
times, but  he  commonly  managed  to  get  the  better 
of  them,  without  harsh  words  or.  angry  tones. 

Judging  of  the  good  doctor  from  his  portrait, 
he  was  ponderous  in  person  and  appearance ;  we 
know  he  was  so  in  his  teaching ;  and  even  when  he 
tried  to  be  humorous,  there  was  commonly  a  crush- 
ing weight  in  his  remarks. 

A  certain  dame,  it  is  said,  called  upon  him  one 
day,  to  find  fault  with  the  length  of  his  white  bands. 
"  Well,  well,"  said  the  doctor,  "  what  do  you  think 
is  the  right  length  ?  Take  them,  and  make  them  as 
long  or  as  short  as  you  like." 


JOHN    GILL. 


78  Life  and  Labors  of 

The  old  lady  was  delighted ;  she  was  sure  her 
dear  pastor  would  grant  her  request,  and  so  she  had 
brought  her  scissors,  and  would  trim  them  at  once. 
Snip,  snip,  went  the  scissors,  and  the  thing  was 
done,  and  the  bands  returned. 

"  Well  now,  my  good  sister,"  said  the  doctor,  "  you 
must  do  me  a  good  turn  also." 

"  Yes,  that  I  will,  doctor.     What  can  it  be  ? " 

"  Well,  you  have  something  about  you  that  is  a 
great  deal  too  long,  and  causes  me  no  end  of  trouble, 
and  I  should  like  to  see  it  shorter." 

"  Indeed,  dear  sir,  I  will  not  hesitate  ;  what  is  it  ? 
Here  are  the  scissors,  use  them  as  you  please." 

"  Come,  then,  good  sister,"  said  the  doctor, ''  /)Z(^ 
out  your  tongue.''- 

He  was  greatly  beloved  by  his  people,  who  bore 
lovingly  with  his  refusal  to  have  an  assistant.  He 
lived,  notwithstanding  his  polemical  writings,  a  calm 
and  quiet  life,  and  died  resting  in  the  Lord.  To  a 
dear  relative,  the  Rev.  John  Gill,  of  St.  Albans,  he 
expressed  his  confidence  and  hope  in  these  words  : 
"  I  depend  wholly  and  alone  upon  the  free,  sovereign, 
eternal,  unchangeable  love  of  God,  the  firm  and  ever- 
lasting covenant  of  grace,  and  my  interest  in  the 
three  Persons  of  the  Trinity,  for  my  whole  salvation ; 
and  not  upon  any  righteousness  of  my  own,  nor 
upon  anything  done  in  me,  or  done  by  me,  under 
the  influences  of  the  Holy  Spirit."  To  one  he  said  : 
"I    have    nothing  to   make    me  uneasy,"    and  then 


Pastor  C.  H,  Spurgeon. 


79 


repeated   the    following    lines    from    Dr.   Watts,   in 
honor  of  the  adored  Redeemer :  — 

"  He  raised  me  from  the  depths  of  sin, 
The  gates  of  gaping  hell ; 
And  fix'd  my  standing  more  secure 
Than  't  was  before  I  fell." 

His  last  audible  words  were  :  "  0  my  Father,  my 
Father  ! "  He  died  at  Camberwell,  October  14th, 
1771. 


DE.    GILL  S    PULPIT. 


Before  the  new  College  was  built.  Dr.  GilFs  pulpit 
was  used  by  the  young  men  in  the  Pastors'  College 
when  preaching  before  their  fellow-students. 

The  mighty  commentator  having  gone  to  his  rest, 


80 


Life  and  Lahore  of 


the  church  had  to  look  round  for  a  successor.  They 
were  guided  to  a  young  man  from  Bristol  Academy, 
John  Rippon,  a  son  of  a  Devonshire  pastor.  He 
was  only  twenty  years  of  age,  and  of  vivacious 
manners.  After  the  rather  ponderous  character  of 
Dr.  Gill's  ministry,  some  forty  of  the  members  could 
not  accept  the  change,  Mr.  Rippon  being  so  young. 
They  withdrew,  and  chose  Mr.  Button,  who,  oddly 
enough,  was  a  year  younger.  Instead  of  resenting 
this    secession,   Mr.    Rippon    expressed    his   wonder 


CARTER    LAXE    CHAPEL. 


that  so  many  had  united  in  his  favor,  and  pro- 
posed that  the  secession  should  be  helped  to  build 
a  meeting-house  ;  which  was  done,  £300  being  raised 
for  that  purpose.     For  fifty  years  he  enjoyed  great 


Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeoii. 


81 


prosperity,  the  church  rising  again  to  be  the  first  in 
the  denomination  in  London.  In  Dr.  Gill's  time  the 
church   had  built    Carter  Lane    Chapel,  one   of   the 


JOHN    RIPPON,    IX    HIS    EARLY    DAYS. 

most  unsightly  religious  edifices  of  the  day.  This 
was  removed  in  Dr.  Rippon's  time  by  the  need  of 
approaches  to  New  London  Bridge,  and  New  Park 

6 


82  Life  and  Labors  of 

Street  Chapel  was  erected  in  about  as  bad  a  situa- 
tion as  could  possibly  have  been  chosen. 

Dr.  Rippon  was  an  author,  though  far  behind 
Keach  and  Gill.  His  "  Selection  of  Hymns  "  proved 
a  good  property,  as  it  was  the  first  compilation  of 
the  time  for  Baptist  congregations.  It  was  used  all 
over  England,  and  in  many  parts  of  America.  Tlie 
accompanying  tune-book  also  held  its  own  for  many 
years.  By  means  of  his  "  Baptist  Register "  he 
sought  to  unite  and  develop  the  resources  of  the 
denomination  wherever  Baptists  existed.  The  four- 
teen volumes  of  the  "  Register,"  from  1790  to  1803, 
are  a  source  of  information  for  which  we  might  look 
in  vain  elsewhere. 

Mr.  Spurgeon  says  of  Dr.  Rippon,  that  "  he  Avas 
rather  clever  than  profound ;  his  talents  were  far  in- 
ferior to  those  of  Gill,  but  he  had  more  tact,  and  so 
turned  his  gifts  to  the  greatest  possible  account.  He 
said  many  smart  and  witty  things,  and  his  preaching 
was  always  lively,  affectionate,  and  impressive.  He 
was  popular  in  the  best  sense  of  the  term,  beloved 
at  home,  respected  abroad,  and  useful  everywhere. 
Many  souls  were  won  to  Jesus  by  his  teaching,  and 
out  of  these  a  remarkable  number  became  themselves 
ministers  of  the  gospel.  The  church-book  abounds 
with  records  of  brethren  preaching  before  the  church, 
as  the  custom  was  in  those  days." 

A  noble  testimony  this  concerning  any  man.  Of 
the  preachers  coming  out  of  the  church,  the  writer 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  83 

can  bear  testimony  to  the  usefulness  of  one,  Rev. 
John  Giles,  of  Eythorne,  who  was  wonderfully 
successful  in  that  very  interesting  sphere. 

For  sixty-three  years  Dr.  Rippon  sustained  the 
pastorate,  beloved  in  life,  honored  in  death,  and 
gratefully  remembered  by  thousands.  His  pastorate 
ended  in  1836. 

His  successor,  the  following  year,  was  another 
young  man,  Joseph  Angus,  now  Professor  Angus, 
D.  D.,  of  Regent's  Park  College.  He  was  ordained 
27th  December,  1837,  and  as  his  invitation  was 
entirely  unanimous,  so  his  pastorate  was  peaceful, 
happy,  and  prosperous.  The  action  of  the  Baptist 
Missionary  Society,  in  offering  Mr.  Angus  the  Secre- 
taryship of  the  Society,  was  a  severe  blow  to  the 
church  at  New  Park  Street,  and  so,  in  about  two 
years,  they  had  again  to  seek  a  pastor. 

Dr.  Angus  has  a  wide  and  worthy  reputation  as  a 
scholar,  an  author,  a  professor  of  theology,  and,  not 
least,  as  one  of  the  Committee  who  revised  the 
Scriptures   in  1881. 

The  choice  of  the  church  now  fell  upon  James 
Smith.  He  had  built  up  a  large  church  and  congre- 
gation at  Cheltenham,  and  there  was  good  reason  to 
expect  similar  blessing  in  London. 

Mr.  Smith  was  not  a  scholar,  had  received  no 
advantages  in  the  way  of  education,  and  was  nei- 
ther profound  nor  clever.  He  was,  however,  well 
taught  in  the   school  of  Christ,  had  a  deep  insight 


84  Life  of  Pastor  C.  H.   Spur g eon. 

into  human  nature,  a  good  command  of  language, 
and  was  alike  sound  in  the  faith,  a  constant  student 
of  the  Word,  and  full  of  love  to  souls.  He  labored 
with  varying  success  for  eight  years,  and  then  re- 
turned to  Cheltenham.  He,  too,  was  an  author.  A 
number  of  his  small  devotional  books  have  had  a 
very  wide  sale,  and  have  been  greatly  used  of  God, 
as  have  also  his  tracts  and  magazine  articles. 

William  Walters  was  the  next  pastor.  He,  too, 
was  a  young  man.  His  style  was  not  generally 
acceptable  to  those  who  had  been  trained  under 
Mr.  Smith.  After  two  years  Mr.  Walters  removed 
to  Halifax,  and  afterwards  did  a  good  work  in  Bir- 
mingham. He  Avas  a  faithful  man,  a  beloved  brother, 
and  a  worthy  friend.  He  died,  after  much  affliction, 
when  not  much  past  middle  life.  His  few  publica- 
tions, like  himself  and  his  preaching,  sound,  thought- 
ful, and  instructive,  have  done  good,  but  have  not 
retained  much  hold  on  public  attention. 

It  will  be  seen  that  most  of  the  pastors  of  this 
church  have  been  men  of  mark,  men  who  made  for 
themselves  a  place  and  a  name.  Several  of  them 
began  their  pastorate  in  their  youth ;  they  were 
mostly  authors,  and  more  or  less  popular.  Mighty 
men  of  valor  some  especially  were,  but  the  old,  old 
proverb  has  been  found  true,  in  part  at  least,  for 
"  the  last  shall  be  first."  Of  the  present  pastor  we 
may  say,  ''  Many  have  done  worthilj^,  but  he  has 
excelled  them  all." 


CHAPTER  X. 


EARLY  YEARS  OF  MR.  SPURGEON'S  PASTORATE. 


'T^HREE  months  of  his  ministry  at  New  Park 
-*■  Street  had  not  passed  before  Mr.  Spurgeon 
was  really  popular,  crowds  flocking  to  the  chapel  at 
every  service,  while  the  newspapers  week  by  week 
were  inquiring  who  and  what  this  young  preacher 
was,  and  whence  he  came.  "  Who  is  Spurgeon  ? "  was 
their  oft-repeated  inquiry.  There  was  no  mistake 
about  his  popularity,  and  it  increased  from  Sunday 
to  Sunday ;  and,  what  is  more,  the  power  of  the 
Lord  was  present  to  heal  the  spiritually  sick,  and  to 
convert  some  of  the  worst  of  transgressors.  From 
the  first  the  writer  rejoiced  in  the  advent  of  such  a 
man;  but  there  were  not  a  few,  older  men  mostly, 
who  shook  their  heads,  and  said  it  would  be  "  only  a 
nine  days'  wonder."  We  remember  one  venerable 
minister,  a  devout  and  godly  man,  but  hampered 
in  some  of  his  views,  who,  when  he  was  asked  his 
opinion  about  the  young  preacher,  replied  that  the 
people  had  itching  ears,  and  Spurgeon  had  come  to 
scratch   them.      Others    expressed    themselves  with 


86  Life  of  Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon. 

even  less  brotherly  or  Christian  feeling.     They  were 
jealous  of  him,  and  predicted  his  speedy  downfall. 

This  was  the  case  chiefly  with  such  good  men  as 
admired  the  doctrines  of  grace,  which  the  young 
preacher  undoubtedly  and  fearlessly  proclaimed,  but 
objected  to  his  fervent  and  repeated  appeals  to 
sinners  to  "  repent,  and  believe  the  gospel,"  to  look 
to  Christ,  and  live.  But  this  was  not  the  case  with 
all  who  held  those  truths.  Quite  recently  the  writer 
met  with  an  elderly  Christian  man  who  had  been  a 
member  of  the  church  at  The  Grove,  Camberwell, 
under  the  ministry  of  the  Rev.  Joseph  Irons.  Mr. 
Irons  had  gone  home,  and  his  successor  was  not 
satisfactory  to  all  Mr:  Irons's  people.  One  evening 
a  minister  of  the  strict  Baptist  order  called  upon  my 
friend,  who  lived  in  Walworth.  It  was  Thursday, 
and  the  minister  was  going  to  hear  the  young 
preacher  at  New  Park  Street,  and  wished  his  friend 
to  accompany  him.  "  No,"  said  he,  "  I  have  had 
enough  of  hoy  preacliersr  Still  the  minister  urged 
him  ;  and  finally,  for  his  sake,  that  he  might  not  seem 
unkind  and  wanting  in  courtesy,  he  consented  and 
went.  The  hymn,  the  exposition,  the  prayer,  but, 
more  than  all,  the  sermon,  so  laid  hold  on  his 
heart  that  he  took  sittings  in  the  chapel,  and  con- 
tinued in  the  congregation  all  the  time  he  remained 
in  London.  The  young  preacher  handled  old  truths 
in  a  new  and  certainly  very  striking  manner,  and 
people  could  not  help  being  arrested,  whether  they 


88  Life  and  Labors  of 

received  the  doctrine  or  not.  The  following  descrip- 
tion of  the  preacher's  style  at  this  time  is  supposed 
to  have  been  written  by  Mr.  Hare :  — 

"  His  voice  is  clear  and  musical ;  his  language 
plain ;  his  style  flowing,  but  terse ;  his  method  lucid 
and  orderly ;  his  matter  sound  and  suitable ;  his 
tone  and  spirit  cordial;  his  remarks  always  pithy 
and  pungent,  sometimes  familiar  and  colloquial,  yet 
never  light  or  coarse,  much  less  profane.  Judging 
from  a  single  sermon,  we  supposed  that  he  would 
become  a  plain,  faithful,  forcible,  and  affectionate 
preacher  of  the  gospel  in  the  form  called  Calvinistic ; 
and  our  judgment  was  the  more  favorable  because, 
while  there  is  a  solidity  beyond  his  years,  we  detected 
little  of  the  wild  luxuriance  naturally  characteristic  of 
very  young  preachers." 

Want  of  order  and  arrangement  is  a  fault  of  most 
young  preachers ;  if  it  ever  applied  to  Mr.  Spurgeon, 
he  very  soon  corrected  it.  "  Once,"  says  he,  "  I  put 
all  my  knowledge  together  in  glorious  confusion,  but 
now  I  have  a  shelf  in  my  head  for  everything ;  and 
whatever  I  read  or  hear,  I  know  where  to  stow  it 
away  for  use  at  the  proper  time." 

In  "The  Treasury  of  David,"  Mr.  Spurgeon  relates 
the  following  anecdote,  which  belongs,  chronologically, 
to  the  period  we  are  describing  :  — 

"  In  the  year  1854,  when  I  had  scarcely  been  in 
London  twelve  months,  the  neighborhood  in  which 
I  labored   was   visited  by  Asiatic   cholera,   and   my 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spur g eon.  89 

congregation  suffered  from  its  inroads.  Family  after 
family  summoned  me  to  the  bedside  of  the  smitten, 
and  almost  every  day  I  was  called  to  visit  the  grave. 
I  gave  myself  up  with  youthful  ardor  to  the  visi- 
tation of  the  sick,  and  was  sent  for  from  all  corners 
of  the  district  by  persons  of  all  ranks  and  religions. 
I  became  weary  in  body  and  sick  at  heart.  My 
friends  seemed  falling  one  by  one,  and  I  felt,  or 
fancied,  that  I  was  sickening  like  those  around  me. 
A  little  more  work  and  weeping  would  have  laid 
me  low  among  the  rest.  I  felt  that  my  burden  was 
heavier  than  I  could  bear,  and  I  was  ready  to  sink 
under  it.  As  God  would  have  it,  I  was  returning 
mournfully  home  from  a  funeral,  when  my  curiosity 
led  me  to  read  a  paper  which  was  wafered  up  in 
a  shoemaker's  window  in  the  Dover  Road.  It  did 
not  look  like  a  trade  announcement,  nor  was  it, 
for  it  bore,  in  a  good,  bold  hand,  these  words :  '  Be- 
cause thou  hast  made  the  Lord,  which  is  my  Refuge, 
even  the  Most  High,  thy  habitation,  there  shall  no 
evil  befall  thee,  neither  shall  any  plague  come  nigh  thy 
dwelling.'  The  effect  on  my  heart  was  immediate. 
Faith  appropriated  the  passage  as  her  own.  I  felt 
secured,  refreshed,  girt  with  immortality.  I  went 
on  with  my  visitations  of  the  dying  in  a  calm 
and  peaceful  spirit ;  I  felt  no  fear  of  evil,  and  I 
suffered  no  harm.  The  providence  which  moved 
the  tradesman  to  place  those  verses  in  his  window 
I  gratefully  acknowledge,  and,  in  the  remembrance 


90  Life  and  Labors  of 

of  its  marvellous  power,  I  adore  the  Lord,  my 
God." 

Many  of  those  who  came  to  hear  the  young 
preacher,  gave  to  the  public  their  ideas  of  the  man 
and  his  work.  Some  of  these  were  not  worth  the 
paper  they  were  printed  on,  but  others  were  judi- 
cious and  free  from  prejudice.  Such  an  article  was 
one  that  appeared  in  "The  Friend,"  written  by  a 
member  of  the  Society  of  Friends.  He  says :  "  The 
crowds  which  have  been  drawn  to  .hear  him,  the 
interest  excited  by  his  ministry,  and  the  conflicting 
opinions  expressed  in  reference  to  his  qualifications 
and  usefulness,  have  been  altogether  without  parallel 
in  modern  times.  It  was  a  remarkable  sight  to  see 
this  round-faced  country  youth  thus  placed  in  a  posi- 
tion of  such  solemn  and  arduous  responsibility,  yet 
addressing  himself  to  the  fulfilment  of  its  onerous 
duties  with  a  gravity,  self-possession,  and  vigor  that 
proved  him  well  fitted  to  the  task  he  had  assumed. 
In  a  few  weeks  the  empty  pews  were  crowded ;  every 
sitting  in  the  chapel  was  let ;  and  ere  twelve  months 
had  elapsed  the  eagerness  to  hear  him  had  become 
so  great  that  every  standing-place  within  the  walls 
was  occupied  on  each  Sabbath,  and  it  soon  became 
evident  that  increased  accommodation  must  be 
provided." 

One  evening  the  preacher  exclaimed,  "  By  faith 
the  walls  of  Jericho  fell  down,  and  by  faith  this  wall 
at  the  back  shall  come  down  too ! "     An  aged  dea- 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spuryeon.  91 

con,  who  had  more  prudence  than  faith,  said  to  the 
preacher  after  the  sermon,  "  Let  us  never  hear  of 
that  again."  ''  What  do  you  mean  ? "  replied  Mr. 
Spurgeon ;  "  you  will  hear  no  more  about  it  ivhen  it  is 
done  !  "  A  meeting  was  held  to  consider  the  matter, 
a  fund  was  opened,  and  in  no  great  length  of  time 
the  vestries  and  schools  were  thrown  into  the  chapel, 
and  a  new  school-room  was  built  on  one  side,  with 
sliding  windows,  so  that  those  who  were  seated  there 
could  hear  the  preacher.  During  these  alterations, 
namely,  from  11th  February  to  27th  May,  1855,  the 
congregation  met  in  Exeter  Hall.  The  large  upper 
hall  was  crammed,  and  paragraphs  appeared  in  the 
daily  papers. stating  that  the  Strand  was  blocked  up 
on  Sundays  by  crowds  who  gathered  to  hear  the 
young  preacher.  It  was  common  to  jeer  at  him, 
and  to  endeavor  to  pour  contempt  on  tlie  man  and 
his  preaching.  Numerous  caricatures  appeared,  some 
of  them  far  from  complimentary.  If  the  object  of 
these  was  to  damage  him  and  his  work,  they  signally 
failed.  The  multitude  that  thronged  to  hear  him  was 
thereby  greatly  increased,  and  numbers  were  brought 
to  repentance  and  faitli. 

Two  of  these  caricatures  may  be  briefly  referred 
to.  In  one,  named  '•  Brimstone  and  Treacle,"  was 
a  rather  grotesque  representation  of  the  young 
preacher  in  the  full  heat  of  his  discourse,  and  on  his 
left  was  a  *'  very  proper"  preacher  in  full  clerical  cos- 
tume, with  his  sermon  on  his  velvet  cushion.     The 


92 


Life  and  Labors  of 


"  BKIMSTOXE    AND    TREACLE." 

latter  was  supposed  to  be  a  likeness  of  the  late  Mr. 
Bellew,  the  fashionable  West  End  preacher. 

The  other  caricature  referred  to  was  named 
''  Catch-'em-alive-O  !  "  The  preacher  appeared  in 
the  act  of  preaching,  but  with  head-gear  like  that 
adopted  by  the  men  who  sell  fly-paper.  People  as 
with  the  wings  of  flies  were  represented  as  attracted 
to  him,  and  sticking  to  his  hat  or  buzzing  around 
him  in  the  act  of  being  caught.  Judges,  lords,  and 
ladies,  as  well  as  poor  women  and  working-men,  were 
all  represented. 

All  this  hue  and  cry  only  increased  the  congrega- 
tion ;  pamphlets  and  letters  in  newspapers  united  to 


Pastor  0.  H.  Spurgeon. 


93 


"  catch-'em-altye-o  ! " 

try  to  crush  him,  but  really  succeeded  in  making  him 
more  and  more  popular. 

The  year  1856  was  a  memorable  one  in  Mr.  Spur- 
geon's  life.  On  January  8th  he  was  married  to  Miss 
Susannah  Thompson,  daughter  of  Mr.  Robert  Thomp- 
son, of  Falcon  Square.  The  service  was  conducted 
at  New  Park  Street  Chapel  by  Dr.  Alexander 
Fletcher.  About  two  thousand  persons  were  unable 
to  enter,  after  the  building  was  crowded. 


94  Life  of  Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeon. 

In  June,  1856,  the  chapel  was  used  in  the  morn- 
ing, and  Exeter  Hall  in  the  evening.  This  was 
found  to  be  inconvenient,  and  a  fund  was  started 
to  provide  for  the  erection  of  a  building  sufficiently 
capacious  to  contain  the  ever-increasing  crowds  that 
flocked  to  the  services. 

As  if  to  urge  this  movement,  the  proprietors  of 
Exeter  Hall  intimated  that  they  were  unable  to  let 
their  hall  continuously  to  one  congregation.  Most 
opportunely,  a  large  hall  in  the  Royal  Surrey  Gardens 
was  just  completed  for  the  monster  concerts  of  M. 
Jullien,  and,  as  Mr.  Spurgeon  says,  "  with  some 
trembling  at  the  magnitude  of  the  enterprise,  this 
hall  was  secured  for  Sabbath  evenings." 

At  the  first  service  in  the  music-hall,  some  evil- 
disposed  persons,  who,  it  is  supposed,  acted  in  con- 
cert, raised  a  cry  of  "Fire!  "  and  created  a  disturbance 
just  after  the  preacher  had  commenced  his  prayer. 
There  were  probably  eight  or  nine  thousand  persons 
present,  and  many  of  them  were  seized  with  a  sudden 
panic.  This  caused  a  rush  to  the  doors,  particularly 
from  the  galleries.  Several  persons,  either  in  conse- 
quence of  their  heedless  haste,  or  from  the  extreme 
pressure  of  the  crowd  behind,  were  thrown  down  on 
the  stone  steps  of  the  northwest  staircase,  and  were 
trampled  on  by  the  crowd  pressing  upon  them.  The 
lamentable  result  was  that  seven  persons  lost  their 
lives,  and  twenty-eight  were  removed  to  the  hospitals 
seriously  bruised  and  injured. 


96  Life  and  Labors  of 

There  is  an  entry  in  the  church-hook,  dated  19th 
October,  1856,  as  follows  :  — 

"  Our  Pastor,  not  being  aware  that  any  loss  of  life 
had  occurred,  continued  in  the  pulpit,  endeavoring 
by  every  means  in  his  power  to  alleviate  the  fears  of 
the  people ;  and  to  a  very  considerable  extent  he  was 
successful.  In  attempting  to  renew  the  service,  it 
was  found  that  the  people  were  too  excited  to  listen 
to  him,  so  the  service  was  closed.  This  lamentable 
circumstance  produced  very  sei'ious  effects  on  the 
nervous  system  of  our  Pastor.  He  was  entirely 
prostrated  for  some  days,  and  compelled  to  relin- 
quish his  preaching  engagements." 

Twenty-five  years  afterwards,  the  writer  witnessed 
the  terribly  depressing  effect  the  memory  of  this  sad 
event  had  on  Mr.  Spurgeon.  During  the  session  of 
the  Baptist  Union  at  Portsmouth  and  Southampton, 
in  1881,  Mr.  Spurgeon  was  announced  to  preach  in 
the  largest  available  room  in  the  former  town.  Long 
before  the  service  be2:an  everv  available  seat  and  all 
standing-room  were  occupied,  and  still  there  were 
hundreds  pressing  forward,  and  endeavoring  to 
crowd  in.  There  was  some  confusion  just  as  the 
preacher  was  passing  on  to  the  platform  to  take  his 
seat.  He  seemed  entirely  unmanned,  and  stood  in  the 
passage  leaning  his  head  on  his  hand.  He  told  the 
writer  that  the  circumstance  so  vividly  recalled 
the  terrible  scene  at  the  Surrey  Music  Hall  that  he 
felt  quite  unable  to  preach.     But  he  did  preach,  and 


Pastor  0.  H,  Spurgeon.  97 

preach  well,  though  he  could  not  entirely  recover 
from  the  agitation  of  his  nervous  system.  Prince 
Edward  of  Saxe- Weimar,  a  cousin  of  Queen  Victoria, 
who  was  then  the  military  commander  of  the  district, 
was  present  with  his  suite,  and  cordially  greeted  ^'  the 
prince  of  preachers  "  after  his  sermon. 

The  church-record  of  Oct.  19th,  1856,  continues  :  — 

"  Through  the  great  mercy  of  our  heavenly  Father, 
our  Pastor  was  restored  so  as  to  be  able  to  occupy  the 
pulpit  in  our  own  chapel  on  Sunday,  October  31st, 
and  gradually  recovered  his  wonted  health  and  vigor. 
The  Lord's  name  be  praised ! 

"  The  church  desire  to  note  this  event  in  their 
minutes,  and  to  record  their  devout  thankfulness  to 
God,  that  in  this  sad  calamity,  the  lives  of  their 
beloved  Pastor,  the  deacons,  and  members,  were  all 
preserved ;  and  also  with  the  hope  that  our  heavenly 
Father  from  this  seeming  evil  may  produce  the  great- 
est amount  of  real  good." 

Beside  all  the  pain  and  distress  of  this  sad  catas- 
trophe, Mr.  Spurgeon  and  his  friends  had  to  bear  the 
wicked  accusations  of  the  public  press. 

The  sufferers  by  the  panic  found  sympathizing 
helpers  in  Mr.  Spurgeon  and  his  friends,  although 
they  were  in  no  sense  or  degree  responsible  for  what 
had  happened. 

To  prevent  any  similar  catastrophe,  it  was  wisely 
arranged  to  hold  the  service  in  the  Music  Hall  in  the 
morning,  though   that   was   less   favorable   to   large 

7 


98  Life  of  Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeon. 

congregations  than  the  evening.  Anyhow,  the  multi- 
tude came  as  before,  and  continued  to  come  for  three 
full  years.  All  classes  came,  high  and  low  ;  but  that 
which  gave  Mr.  Spurgeon  the  greatest  joy  was  that 
hundreds  were  there  led  to  seek  the  Lord,  and  find 
eternal  life  in  Him. 

About  this  time  a  remarkable  letter  appeared  in 
"  The  Times "  newspaper,  dated  from  Broad  Pliylac- 
tery,  Westminster,  and  signed  Hahitans  in  Sicca.  It 
was  known  to  be  written  by  an  eminent  scholar,  and 
it  produced  a  very  favorable  impression,  and  was  not 
without  more  abiding  results.  Part  of  the  letter  may 
be  appropriately  given  here  :  — 

"  '  I  want  to  hear  Spurgeon  :  let  us  go.'  Now,  I  am 
supposed  to  be  a  High  Churchman,  so  I  answered, 
'  What !  go  and  hear  a  Calvinist,  a  Baptist,  —  a  man 
who  ought  to  be  ashamed  of  himself  for  being  so  near 
the  Church,  and  yet  not  within  its  pale?'  'Never 
mind,  come  and  hear  him.'  Well,  we  went  yesterday 
morning  to  the  Music  Hall,  in  the  Surrey  Gardens. 

"Fancy  a  congregation  consisting  of  10,000  per- 
sons streaming  into  the  hall,  mounting  the  galleries, 
humming,  buzzing,  and  swarming,  —  a  mighty  hive  of 
bees,  —  eager  to  secure,  at  first,  the  best  places,  and, 
at  last,  any  place  at  all.  After  waiting  more  than 
half  an  hour,  —  for,  if  you  wish  to  have  a  seat,  you 
must  be  there  at  least  that  space  of  time  in  advance,  — 
Mr.  Spurgeon  ascended  his  tribune.  To  the  hum,  and 
rush,  and  trampling  of  men  succeeded  a  low  concen- 


100  Life  and  Labors  of 

trated  thrill  and  murmur  of  devotion,  which  seemed 
to  run  at  once,  like  an  electric  current,  through  the 
breast  of  every  one  present;  and  b}^  this  magnetic 
chain  the  preacher  held  us  fast  bound  for  about  two 
hours.  It  is  not  my  purpose  to  give  a  summary  of 
his  discourse.  It  is  enough  to  say  of  his  voice,  that 
its  power  and  volume  are  sufficient  to  reach  every 
one  in  that  vast  assembly  ;  of  his  language,  that  it 
is  neither  high-flown  nor  homely  ;  of  his  style,  that 
it  is  at  times  familiar,  at  times  declamatory,  but 
always  happy,  and  often  eloquent ;  of  his  doctrine, 
that  neither  the  Calvinist  nor  the  Baptist  appears  in 
the  forefront  of  the  battle,  which  is  urged  by  Mr. 
Spurgeon  with  relentless  animosity,  and  with  gospel 
weapons,  against  irreligion,  cant,  hypocrisy,  pride, 
and  those  secret  bosom  sins  which  so  easily  beset  a 
man  in  daily  life ;  and  to  sum  up  all  in  a  word,  it  is 
enough  to  say  of  the  man  himself  that  he  impresses 
you  with  a  perfect  conviction  of  his  sincerity. 

"  But  I  have  not  written  so  much  about  my  chil- 
dren's want  of  spiritual  food  when  they  listened  to 

the  mumbling  of  the  Archbishop  of  ,  and  my 

own  banquet  at  the  Surrey  Gardens,  without  a  desire 
to  draw  a  practical  conclusion  from  these  two  stories, 
and  to  point  them  by  a  moral.  Here  is  a  man  not 
more  Calvinistic  than  many  an  incumbent  of  the 
Established  Church  who  '  humbles  and  mumbles,'  as 
old  Latimer  says,  over  his  liturgy  and  text,  —  here  is  a 
man  who  says  that  complete  immersion,  or  something 


Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeoyi.  101 

of  the  kind,  of  adults,  is  necessary  to  baptism.  These 
are  his  faults  of  doctrine  ;  but  if  I  were  the  examin- 
ing chaplain  of  the  Archbishop  of ,  I  would  say, 

'  May  it  please  your  grace,  here  is  a  man  able  to 
preach  eloquently,  able  to  fill  the  largest  church  in 
England  with  his  voice,  and  what  is  more  to  the  pur- 
pose, with  people.  And  may  it  please  your  grace, 
here  are  two  churches  in  the  metropolis,  St.  Paul's 
and  Westminster  Abbey.  What  does  your  grace 
think  of  inviting  Mr.  Spurgeon,  this  heretical  Cal- 
vinist  and  Baptist,  who  is  able  to  draw  10,000  souls 
after  him,  just  to  try  his  voice  some  Sunday  morning, 
in  the  nave  of  either  of  those  churches  ? '  " 

The  7th  of  October,  1857,  was  appointed  as  a  day 
of  national  humiliation  on  account  of  the  Indian 
mutiny.  Mr.  Spurgeon  preached  in  the  centre  tran- 
sept of  the  Crystal  Palace  to  more  than  twenty-three 
thousand  people,  making  a  collection,  which  amounted 
to  <£686,  for  the  National  Fund. 

In  the  celebrated  "  Greville  Memoirs"  is  the  follow- 
ing record  concerning  the  pastor  of  the  Tabernacle 
Church:  "8th  February,  1857.  I  have  just  come 
from  hearing  the  celebrated  Mr.  Spurgeon  preach  in 
the  Music  Hall  of  the  Surrey  Gardens.  It  was  quite 
full.  He  told  us  from  the  pulpit  that  there  were  9,000 
persons  present.  The  service  was  like  the  Presby- 
terian, —  psalms,  prayer,  expounding  a  psalm,  and  a 
sermon.  He  is  certainly  very  remarkable,  and  un- 
deniably a  fine  character,  —  not  remarkable  in  person  ; 


102  Life  and  Labors  of 

in  face  resembling  a  smaller  Macaulay ;  a  very  clear 
and  powerful  voice,  which  was  heard  through  the 
hall ;  a  manner  n.atural,  impassioned,  and  without 
affectation  or  extravagance ;  wonderful  fluency  and 
command  of  language,  abounding  in  illustration,  and 
very  often  of  a  very  familiar  kind,  but  without  any- 
thing ridiculous  or  irreverent.  He  gave  me  an  im- 
pression of  his  earnestness  and  sincerity;  speaking 
without  book  or  notes,  yet  his  discourse  was  evidently 
very  carefully  prepared.  The  text  was,  '  Cleanse 
thou  me  from  secret  faults,'  and  he  divided  it  into 
heads,  —  the  misery,  the  folly,  the  danger  (and  a 
fourth,  which  I  have  forgotten),  of  secret  sins,  in 
all  of  which  he  was  very  eloquent  and  impressive. 
He  preached  for  about  three-quarters  of  an  hour, 
and,  to  judge  by  the  use  of  the  handkerchiefs  and 
the  audible  sobs,  with  great  effect." 

While  Mr.  Spurgeon  continued  his  services  in  the 
Music  Hall,  many  persons,  especially  among  the  no- 
bility, who  probably  would  not  have  entered  a  chapel 
for  public  worship,  attended  his  ministry.  As  noble  as 
any  of  them  was  a  man  who  sprang  from  the  people, 
and  who  had  won  honors  far  beyond  coronets  as  a 
pioneer  missionary  and  discoverer,  —  Dr.  Livingstone. 
On  the  occasion  of  one  of  his  visits  a  scene  of  almost 
unequalled  beauty  and  pathos  was  witnessed.  On 
the  platform,  near  the  pulpit,  was  sitting  the  Rev. 
Dr.  Armitage  of  New  York,  who  had  been  introduced 
to  Mr.  Spurgeon  the  previous  day.     Nearer  the  pulpit 


Pastor  0.  H.  Spurgeon,  103 

sat  the  apostolic  Dr.  Livingstone.  The  sermon  that 
morning  was  one  of  great  power,  full  of  earnest 
appeals  and  heart-searching  utterances,  such  as  had 
produced  tears  in  hundreds  of  eyes  during  its  deliv- 
ery. Immediately  the  sermon  was  over,  Dr.  Living- 
stone's presence  was  announced  to  Mr.  Spurgeon. 
As  Dr.  Livingstone  approached,  Dr.  Armitage  came 
forward  to  offer  his  congratulations,  and  to  shake 
the  hand  of  the  preacher.  ]\[r.  Spurgeon  withdrew 
his  own  hand,  remarking  pleasantly  to  the  American 
divine,  ''  No,  shake  hands  first  with  Dr.  Livingstone  ; 
he  is  the  worthier  man."  The  congratulations  of 
the  African  explorer  and  the  New  York  pastor  were 
given  with  manifest  sincerity,  Mr.  Spurgeon  receiv- 
ing them  with  that  simple,  unaffected  modesty  which 
is  so  characteristic  of  the  man.  During  the  brief 
conversation  which  followed,  Dr.  Livingstone  re- 
marked that  no  religious  service  he  ever  remembered 
had  so  deeply  impressed  his  own  mind  as  that  he 
had  witnessed  and  participated  in  that  morning.  He 
added  that,  when  he  had  retired  again  into  the  soli- 
tudes of  Africa,  no  scene  he  had  ever  witnessed  would 
afford  him  more  consolation  than  the  recollection  of 
the  man  God  had  raised  up,  who  could  so  effectively 
and  impressively  preach  to  congregated  thousands, 
while  he  should  have  to  content  himself  by  preach- 
ing to  units,  or,  at  most,  tens  under  a  tropical  sky  in 
Africa. 

Dr.  Armitage  had  come  over  to  England  to  invite 


104  Life  and  Labors  of 

Mr.  Spurgeon  to  go  to  America  to  deliver  a  series  of 
lectures,  for  which  a  very  large  sum  of  money  would 
be  given ;  but  tiie  invitation  was  not  accepted. 

During  one  of  his  well-earned  vacations  Mr.  Spur- 
geon visited  Holland,  and  preached  before  the  Dutcli 
Court,  and  had  a  lengthened  interview  with  the  Queen. 
On  another  occasion  he  visited  Geneva,  where  he 
preached  for  Dr.  Merle  D'Aubigne,  and  also  in  the 
Cathedral  where  John  Calvin  aforetime  proclaimed 
similar  truths. 

In  December,  1859,  Mr.  Spurgeon  and  his  friends 
left  the  Surrey  Music  Hall.  The  circumstances  under 
which  they  made  this  move  are  worthy  of  note,  and 
may  be  regarded  in  the  light  of  a  protest  against 
the  secularization  of  the  Lord's-day.  "  We  paid  the 
company,"  says  Mr.  Spurgeon,  "  a  large  sum  for  our 
morning  service,  and  this  was  the  only  amount  out 
of  which  a  dividend  was  paid.  They  proposed  to 
open  the  gardens  for  amusement  on  the  Lord's-Day 
evening,  and  we  threatened  to  give  up  our  tenancy 
if  they  did  so.  This  prevented  the  evil  for  some  time, 
but  at  length  the  baser  sort  prevailed,  and  under  the 
notion  that  Sunday  '  pleasure '  would  prove  remunera- 
tive, they  advertised  that  the  gardens  would  be  opened 
on  the  Sabbath ;  we  therefore  felt  bound  in  honor  to 
leave  the  place,  and  we  did  so.  After  a  while  a  fire 
almost  destroyed  the  building,  and  the  relics  were  for 
years  turned  into  a  hospital." 

On  the  18th  December,  1859,  Mr.  Spurgeon  and  his 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  105 

people  occupied  Exeter  Hall  for  the  third  time.  Some 
of  his  remarks  upon  leaving  that  building  to  occupy 
the  new  Tabernacle,  1st  March,  1861,  though  follow- 
ing in  time  events  we  have  yet  to  narrate,  may  appro- 
priately find  a  place  here  :  — 

'■'In  the  providence  of  God  we,  as  a  church  and 
people,  have  had  to  wander  often.  This  is  our  third 
sojourn  within  these  walls.  It  is  now  about  to  close. 
We  have  had  at  all  times  and  seasons  a  compulsion 
for  moving;  sometimes  a  compulsion  of  conscience, 
at  other  times  a  compulsion  of  pleasure,  as  on  this 
occasion.  I  am  sure  that  when  we  first  went  to  the 
Surrey  Music  Hall  God  went  with  us.  Satan  went 
too,  but  he  fled  before  us.  That  frightful  calamity, 
the  impression  of  which  can  never  be  erased  from  my 
mind,  turned  out,  in  the  providence  of  God,  to  be 
one  of  the  most  wonderful  means  of  turning  public 
attention  to  special  services,  and  I  do  not  doubt  that 
—  fearful  catastrophe  though  it  was  —  it  has  been 
the  mother  of  multitudes  of  blessings.  The  Christian 
world  noted  the  example,  and  saw  its  after-success ; 
they  followed  it ;  and  to  this  day,  in  the  theatre  and 
in  the  cathedral,  the  Word  of  Christ  is  preached  where 
it  never  was  preached  before.  In  each  of  our  mov- 
ings  we  have  had  reason  to  see  the  hand  of  God,  and 
here  particularly  ;  for  many  residents  in  the  West 
End,  who  probably  might  not  have  taken  a  journey 
beyond  the  river,  have  in  this  place  come  to  listen 
to  the  Word.     Here  God's  srace  has  broken  hard 


106  Life  and  Labors  of 

hearts ;  here  have  souls  been  renewed,  and  wanderers 
reclaimed.  Give  unto  the  Lord,  0  ye  mighty,  give 
unto  the  Lord  glory  and  strength  ;  give  unto  the 
Lord  the  glory  due  unto  His  name." 

We  may  appropriately  close  this  chapter  by  a  brief 
reference  to 

THE   SURREY   GARDENS   MEMORIAL   HALL. 

This  was  erected  in  1891,  in  Penrose  Street,  Wal- 
worth, close  to  the  site  of  the  Surrey  Gardens,  at 
the  cost  of  £3,000,  as  a  liome  for  one  of  the  many 
branch  schools  and  missions  connected  with  the 
Metropolitan  Tabernacle,  and  especially  to  commemo- 
rate the  gracious  work  of  God,  in  saving  many  hun- 
dreds of  souls  by  the  preaching  of  the  gospel  in  the 
Music  Hall. 

In  "■  The  Sword  and  the  Trowel "  for  October,  1890, 
Mr.  Spurgeon,  in  explaining  the  project  for  the  erec- 
tion of  the  Memorial  Hall,  wrote  :  "  All  classes 
heard  the  Word  in  the  great  Hall,  —  from  the  Prime 
Minister  downwards.  At  no  time  have  so  many  of 
the  aristocracy  made  acquaintance  with  Noncon* 
formist  worship.  As  for  the  multitude,  they  were 
always  there  in  force ;  and  these,  not  only  from 
the  religious  section  of  society,  but  largely  from 
those  who  never  went  to  public  worship.  The  read- 
ing of  newspapers  before  the  commencement  of  ser- 
vice, though  in  itself  objectionable  enough,  was  the 
proof  that  those  were  present  for  whom  the  services 


Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeon, 


107 


were  designed.  The  additions  to  the  church  were 
very  numerous,  and  they  were  mainly  from  that 
stratum  of  society  which  is  not  touched  by  ordinary 
religious  services.  Though  the  Hall  is  so  swept  away 
that  not  a  wreck  remains,  it  will  never  cease  to  hold 


a  place  in  the  memory  of  those  to  whom  it  was  their 
spiritual  birthplace,  and  they  are  very  many." 

The  project  was  heartily  received.  The  pastor 
and  deacons,  as  in  all  Tabernacle  schemes,  generally 
led  the  way  with  liberal  donations  ;  and  many  friends, 
who  had  been  blessed  in  the  Music  Hall,  sent  their 


108  Life  of  Pastor  C.  H.  S'puvgeon. 

contributions,  from  "  the  widow's  mite  "  to  the  rich 
man's  XlOO,  until  several  pages  of  "The  Sword  and 
the  Trowel "  Avere  required  for  the  lists  of  donors  to 
the  Memorial  Fund. 

Mr.  Higgs,  one  of  Mr.  Spurgeon's  deacons,  pur- 
chased a  suitable  site,  and  generously  undertook 
to  hand  it  over,  with  the  completed  building,  for 
£3,000,  a  sum  considerably  less  than  it  would  have 
cost  if  put  up  to  contract.  The  memorial  stones 
were  laid  by  Mr.  Spurgeon  and  Mr.  S.  R.  Pearce, 
superintendent  of  the  Tabernacle  and  Carter  Street 
Sunday-schools,  and  in  due  course  the  Memorial 
Hall  was  finished.  It  was  to  have  been  opened  by 
Mr.  Spurgeon  on  the  2d  June,  1891,  but  his  illness 
made  it  necessary  to  postpone  the  inaugural  service 
until  the  23d  of  the  month;  and  his  illness  continu- 
ing, the  Rev.  J.  A.  Spurgeon,  his  brother  and  co- 
pastor,  preached  in  the  afternoon  ;  and  a  public 
meeting  was  held  in  the  evening,  presided  over  by 
Samuel  Barrow,  Esq.,  who  was  present  at  the  Music 
Hall  on  the  night  of  the  catastrophe.  The  whole 
cost  of  the  land  and  buildings  had  been  previously 
subscribed,  so  that  the  teachers  of  the  Carter  Street 
Sunday-school  took  possession  of  their  new  premises 
free  from  debt. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

THE   METROPOLITAN   TABERNACLE. 

nPHE  history  of  this  building  is  a  subject  full  of 
^      interest,  and,  if  we  had  liberty  and  space  to 
tell  all  the  wonderful  incidents  in  connection  there- 
with, many  startling  facts  would  be  revealed. 

The  first  great  meeting  for  considering  steps  to  be 
taken  to  prepare  a  permanent  home  for  the  church 
and  congregation  was  held  in  October,  1856.  The 
proposal  was  very  heartily  taken  up  by  Mr.  Spurgeon's 
friends,  and  it  found  favor  in  many  parts  of  the 
country ;  indeed,  wherever  he  or  his  sermons  went. 
Of  course  there  were  obstructionists,  as  there  always 
are  whenever  any  good  and  great  work  is  projected. 
It  was  so  in  the  time  of  Zerubbabel,  when  the  second 
temple  at  Jerusalem  was  in  course  of  erection.  Some 
of  these  obstructionists  laughed  at  the  proposal  to 
erect  a  place  of  worship  to  seat  five  thousand  people. 
But  the  work  went  on,  notwithstanding.  By  January, 
1858,  the  amount  in  hand  was  £6,100,  and  within  the 
next  year  it  reached  <£ 9,639.  £5,000  were  set  aside 
for  the  purchase  of  the  site.    ''  We  went  plodding  on," 


110  Life  of  Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeon. 

says  Mr.  Spurgeon,  "  the  pastor  collecting  personally, 
or  by  his  sermons,  very  much  of  the  money,  travelling 
far  and  wide  to  do  so."  His  plan  was  to  divide  the 
collections,  half  going  to  some  local  object,  and  half 
being  added  to  his  Tabernacle  list.  Sometimes  he 
would  make  an  exception  to  this  rule,  and  give  the 
whole  of  the  collection  to  help  the  income  of  some 
needy  pastor. 

Mr.  Spurgeon  has  always  been  well  received  in 
Scotland,  and  his  Scottish  friends  came  forward 
liberally  to  help  his  Tabernacle  Fund.  The  first 
stone  was  laid,  with  great  rejoicings,  on  the  16th 
August,  1859,  by  Sir  Samuel  Morton  Peto.  The 
site  was  then  paid  for,  and  certain  instalments  to 
the  builder.  In  January,  1860,  there  was  <£  16,868 
in  hand,  more  than  half  of  the  sum  required. 

Many  remarkable  interpositions  of  providence  were 
witnessed  in  connection  with  the  great  enterprise. 
First,  in  reference  to  the  ground,  which  belonged  to 
the  Fishmongers'  Company.  It  was  doubtful  whether 
they  could  sell  the  land,  and  whether  they  would  if 
they  could.  Happily,  Mr.  James  Spicer  and  other 
friends  were  upon  the  Court  of  the  Company,  and  so 
the  land  was  secured.  Then,  in  case  the  Company 
might  not  be  legally  free  to  sell  the  freehold,  Mr. 
William  Joynson,  the  enterprising  paper-maker  of 
St.  Mary  Cray,  Kent,  deposited  sufficient  money  to 
pay  for  an  Act  of  Parliament,  authorizing  the  Com- 
pany to  sell.     The  kind  hand  of  the  Lord  was  also 


112  Life  and  Labors  of 

seen  in  disposing  a  gentleman  of  Bristol,  who  had 
never  heard  Mr.  Spurgeon,  to  give  £5,000  towards 
the  building. 

"  Eternity  alone  can  reveal,"  says  Mr.  Spiirgeon, 
"  all  the  generous  feeling  and*  self-denying  liberality 
evinced  by  Christian  people  in  connection  with  this 
enterprise,  —  to  us,  at  any  rate,  so  gigantic  at  the 
time  that,  apart  from  Divine  aid,  we  could  never  have 
carried  it  through.  One  of  the  chief  of  our  mercies 
was  the  fact  that  our  beloved  brother,  William  Higgs, 
was  our  builder,  and  treated  us  with  unbounded  liber- 
ality throughout  the  whole  affair." 

Funds  came  in  more  or  less  freely,  but  at  the  be- 
ginning of  1861  <£4,000  was  still  needed,  that  the 
place  might  be  opened  free  of  debt. 

"  Take  it  to  tlie  Lord  in  prayer," 

has  ever  been  the  habit  of  the  pastor  and  people  of 
the  Tabernacle  in  all  cases  of  difficulties,  trials,  and 
necessities.  And  so  it  is  written  among  the  records 
of  the  church  :  — 

"  This  church  needs  rather  more  than  £4,000,  to 
enable  it  to  open  the  New  Tabernacle  free  of  all  debt. 
It  humbly  asks  this  temporal  mercy  of  God,  and  be- 
lieves, that,  for  Jesus'  sake,  the  prayer  will  be  heard, 
and  the  boon  bestowed."  This  was  signed  by  Mr. 
Spurgeon  and  his  principal  helpers.  The  pra^'er  was 
heard,  and  the  boon  bestowed,  and  the  pastor  and 
many  friends  signed  the  testimony  that  follows :  — 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  113 

"  We,  the  undersigned  members  of  the  church 
lately  worshipping  in  New  Park  Street  Chapel,  but 
now  assembling  in  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle, 
Newington,  desire,  with  overflowing  hearts,  to  make 
known  and  record  the  lovingkindness  of  our  faithful 
God.  We  asked  in  faith,  but  our  Lord  has  exceeded 
our  desires  ;  for  not  only  was  the  whole  sum  given 
us,  but  far  sooner  than  we  had  looked  for  it.  Truly 
the  Lord  is  good,  and  worthy  to  be  praised.  We  are 
ashamed  of  ourselves  that  we  ever  doubted  him ;  and 
we  pray  that,  as  a  church,  and  as  individuals,  we  may 
be  enabled  to  trust  in  the  Lord  at  all  times  with  con- 
fidence, so  that  in  quietness  we  may  possess  our 
souls.  To  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost  we  offer 
praise  and  thanksgiving,  and  we  set  to  our  seal  that 
God  is  true." 

It  is  a  pleasing  fact,  and  it  is  a  pleasure  to  be  able 
to  record  it,  that,  among  the  thousands  of  contributors 
to   the  Tabernacle  Fund,  there  were  many  who  be- 
longed to  other  denominations,  and  not  a  few  who 
'  were  attached  members  of  the  Church  of  England. 

The  Tabernacle  is  a  noble  pile,  not  devoid  of 
beauty,  though  utility  has  been  the  first  considera- 
tion. For  the  gratification  of  those  who  live  in 
distant  parts  of  the  country  and  of  the  world,  and 
who  have  never  visited  it,  and  may  never  see  it,  we 
give  a  few  particulars  concerning  its  size,  capabili- 
ties, and  appointments. 

The  building  is  one  hundred  and  forty-six  feet  in 


114  Life  of  Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeon. 

length,  eighty-one  feet  in  width,  and  sixty-two  feet 
in  heiQ:ht.  There  are  five  thousand  five  hundred 
sittings,  and  room  for  another  five  hundred  at  least, 
without  crowding.  Below  is  a  lecture-hall,  seating 
nearly  a  thousand,  a  school-room  for  a  thousand 
children,  with  several  class-rooms,  &c.  In  addition, 
there  are  rooms  for  working  meetings,  Bible-classes, 
and  secretary's  office ;  with  three  vestries,  for  pastor, 
deacons,  and  elders.  But  with  all  these  the  accom- 
modation is  all  too  little  for  the  work,  and  rooms 
in  the  College  are  constantly  in  use. 

The  opening  services  occupied  about  a  month.  A 
full  account  of  the  proceedings  has  been  published, 
and  may  still  be  had  of  Messrs.  Passmore  k  Alabaster. 
A  brief  outline,  however,  will  not  be  out  of  place  here. 

The  first  service  in  the  new  Tabernacle  was  a 
prayer-meeting.  It  was  held  at  7  o'clock  in  the 
morning,  on  Monday,  March  18th,  1861.  More  than  a 
thousand  people  were  present.  Mr.  Spurgeon  pre- 
sided, and  first  addressed  the  throne  of  grace,  being 
followed  by  some  of  the  elders,  a  student,  E.  Ball,  Esq., 
M.  P.,  and  George  Moore,  a  deacon.  Fervent  and  in- 
tensely earnest  were  the  prayers  that  God  would 
come  and  fill  the  house  with  His  glory,  and  the 
brethren  separated  with  the  firm  conviction  that  God 
would  be  with  them  of  a  truth. 

The  first  sermon  in  the  Tabernacle  was  preached 
by  Mr.  Spurgeon,  on  Monday  afternoon,  25th  March, 
1861,  from  the  text  (Acts  v.  42) :  "  And  daily  in  the 


116  Life  and  Labors  of 

temple,  and  in  every  house,  they  ceased  not  to  teach 
and  preach  Jesus  Christ." 

He  said  he  was  totally  unable  to  preach.  "  And 
indeed,"  said  he,  "  I  think  I  shall  scarcely  attempt  a 
sermon,  but  rather  give  a  sort  of  declaration  of  the 
truths  from  which  future  sermons  shall  be  made.  I 
will  give  you  bullion  rather  than  cohi ;  the  block 
from  the  quarry,  and  not  the  statue  from  the  chisel. 
It  appears  that  the  one  subject  upon  which  men 
preached  in  the  apostolic  age  was  Jesus  Christ.  The 
tendency  of  man,  if  left  alone,  is  continually  to  go 
further  and  further  from  God ;  and  the  church  of 
God  itself  is  no  exception  to  the  general  rule.  For 
the  first  few  years  during  and  after  the  apostolic  era, 
Christ  Jesus  was  preached ;  but  gradually  the  church 
departed  from  the  central  point,  and  began  rather  to 
preach  ceremonials  and  church  offices  than  the  person 
of  their  Lord.  So  has  it  been  in  these  modern  times. 
We  also  have  fallen  into  the  same  error,  —  at  least, 
to  a  degree  ;  and  have  gone  from  preaching  Christ  to 
preaching  doctrines  about  Christ;  inferences  which 
may  be  drawn  from  His  life,  or  definitions  which  may 
be  gathered  from  His  discourses.  We  are  not  con- 
tent to  stand  like  angels  in  the  sun ;  our  fancies  dis- 
turb our  rest,  and  must  needs  fly  on  the  sunbeams 
further  and  further  from  the  glorious  source  of  light. 
In  the  days  of  Paul  it  was  not  difficult  at  once,  in 
one  word,  to  give  the  sum  and  substance  of  the  cur- 
rent theology.     It  was  Christ  Jesus.  .  .  . 


\ 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon,  117 

"  I  would  propose  (and  oh,  may  the  Lord  grant  us 
grace  to  carry  out  that  proposition,  from  which  no 
Christian  can  dissent ! ),  I  would  propose  that  the  sub- 
ject of  the  ministry  of  this  house,  as  long  as  this  plat- 
form shall  stand,  and  as  long  as  this  house  shall  be 
frequented  by  worshippers,  shall  be  tlie  person  of 
Jesus  Christ.  I  am  never  ashamed  to  avow  myself  a 
Calvinist,  although  I  claim  to  be  a  Calvinist  after 
Calvin,  rather  than  after  the  modern  debased  fashion. 
I  do  not  hesitate  to  take  the  name  of  Baptist.  You 
have  there  (pointing  to  the  baptistery)  substantial  evi- 
dence that  I  am  not  ashamed  of  that  ordinance  of  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ ;  but  if  I  am  asked  to  say  what  is 
my  creed,  I  think  I  must  reply,  '  It  is  Jesus  Christ.' 
My  venerable  predecessor,  Dr.  Gill,  has  left  a  body  of 
divinity,  admirable  and  excellent  in  its  way ;  but  the 
body  of  divinity  to  which  I  would  pin  and  bind  my- 
self forever,  God  helping  me,  is  not  his  system  of 
divinity,  or  any  other  human  treatise,  but  Christ 
Jesus,  who  is  the  sum  and  substance  of  the  gospel, 
who  is  in  Himself  all  theology,  the  incarnation  of 
every  precious  truth,  the  all-glorious  personal  embodi- 
ment of  the  way,  the  truth,  and  the  life." 

In  the  evening  of  the  same  day  the  Rev.  William 
Brock,  D.D.,  preached  from  Philippians  i.  18  :  "  Christ 
is  preached ;  and  I  therein  do  rejoice,  yea,  and  will 
rejoice." 

Comparing  the  state  of  society  in  Paul's  day,  in 
reference  to  the  gospel,  with  the  present  condition  of 


118  Life  and  Labors  of 

affairs, —  the  hearers  and  disciples  being  so  much  fewer 
then  than  now,  —  he  remarked,  with  fine  effect,  in  one 
of  the  opening  paragraplis  :  — 

"  But  how  he  would  have  rejoiced,  or  how  he 
would  rejoice,  if  he  were  living  now !  Why,  for 
every  one  who  preached  the  gospel  in  his  time, 
there  are  thousands  who  are  preaching  it  now ;  for 
every  hundred  hearers  of  that  day,  there  are  thou- 
sands upon  thousands  now :  and  for  every  place 
into  which  the  citizens  of  Rome  might  go  to  hear 
about  Christ  and  Him  crucified,  I  need  not  say  that 
there  are  many  and  ever-multiplying  places  now. 
Andyou,  my  brethren,  —  the  pastor  of  this  church  and 
those  connected  with  him,  —  you  have  added  to  the 
number,  thank  God,  of  those  places ;  and  we  are  to- 
night to  celebrate  the  completion  of  one,  I  suppose, 
of  the  best  places  that  has  ever  been  reared  for  the 
honor  and  the  glory  of  Christ.  From  the  first  day 
until  now,  from  its  foundation  to  its  top-stone,  you 
have  begun,  and  continued,  and  ended,  —  your  desire, 
your  prayer,  your  purpose,  your  ambition,  having 
been  just  simply  this :  that  liere  the  Redeemer's 
name  may  l)e  magnified,  that  here  His  great  salva- 
tion in  all  simplicity  may  be  proclaimed.  And  we 
have  come  here  to-night  to  assure  you  of  our  sym- 
pathy, to  give  to  you  the  pledges  of  our  brotherly 
affection,  and  in  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the 
Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  to  bid  you  heartily  God- 
speed." 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon,  119 

On  Tuesda}^  evening,  26th  March,  the  first  of  the 
public  meetings  in  connection  with  the  opening  of  the 
Tabernacle  took  place,  limited  exclusively  to  the  con- 
tributors to  the  building  fund,  of  whom  more  than 
three  thousand  were  present.  Up  to  the  moment 
when  Sir  Henry  Havelock  (now  Sir  Henry  Havelock- 
Allan)  took  the  chair,  some  half-dozen  gentlemen 
were  busy  on  the  lower  platform  receiving  and  re- 
cording the  various  gifts  from  rich  and  poor,  high 
and  low,  from  pence  to  pounds;  all  seeming  full  of 
joy  and  gladness. 

There  were  several  well-known  speakers  that  even- 
ing, of  whom  we  believe,  besides  the  chairman,  Mr. 
Spurgeon  is  the  only  survivor.  Jonathan  George, 
Francis  Tucker,  Charles  Stovel,  and  George  Moore, 
have  all  passed  away  to  their  rest  and  home.  Their 
words  were  well-timed  and  weighty ;  but  there  was 
a  special  appropriateness  in  the  address  of  the  Rev. 
Francis  Tucker,  B.A.,  and  his  words  may  well  be  re- 
peated now,  when,  nearer  home  than  at  that  time,  the 
evils  he  deprecated  are  in  some  quarters  tolerated, 
and  their  advocates  hailed  as  brethren  by  men  re- 
putedly of  sounder  faith.  Mr.  Tucker  said:  "As 
to  the  beauty  of  the  building,  no  words  he  could 
use  would  adequately  describe  it.  I  do  from  my 
heart  congratulate  you  on  the  size  and  beauty  of  the 
edifice.  But  I  have  also  to  congratulate  you  upon 
another  matter, —  upon  the  doctrines  that  would  be 
preached  in  that  grand  building.    He  was  not  there,"  he 


120  Life  and  Labors  of 

said,  "  to  give  account  of  every  word  that  his  brother 
Spurgeon  had  ever  uttered,  nor  of  every  aspect  of 
every  doctrine  which  he  had  presented  ;  but  as  an  older 
man  than  his  brother,  he  was  sure  he  would  not  be 
thought  impertinent  if  he  said  that  he,  with  many  of 
his  brethren  throughout  the  country,  had  watched 
Mr.  Spurgeon's  course  with  intense  and  prayerful 
interest.  They  could  see  his  growth  and  develop- 
ment towards  a  liberality  and  a  symmetry  of  creed 
which  had  filled  their  hearts  with  gratitude  and  joy. 
Just  as  dear  Jonathan  George  said  at  a  meeting  held 
when  the  Tabernacle  was  in  a  very  unfinished  state 
—  there  were  some  people  who  wanted  to  keep  the 
eagle  in  a  very  small  cage,  but  it  was  no  use  doing 
that ;  the  eagle  would  either  break  his  wings  or 
break  his  cage.  Well,  they  rejoiced  that  it  was  not 
the  wings  of  the  eagle  which  had  been  broken, 
but  the  cao'e :  and  thev  now  saw  the  noble  bird 
careering  through  the  firmament  in  the  shining 
light  of  the  Sun  of  Righteousness."  Mr.  Tucker 
further  said  that  ^'  he  looked  upon  his  brother 
Spurgeon  as  one  who  upheld  the  Sovereignty  of 
God,  and  who,  on  the  other  hand,  declared  the 
responsibility  of  man.  He  preached  that  never 
would  the  sinner  repent  without  the  aid  of  the  Holy 
Ghost,  and  yet  he  called  upon  every  sinner  to 
'  repent,  and  believe  the  gospel.'  Specially  did  his 
brother  make  prominent  the  grand  doctrine  -of  the 
atoning  sacrifice  of  Christ,  and  the  kindred  doctrine 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  121 

of  justification  by  faith  in  the  righteousness  of  our 
Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ. 

"  He  took  it  that  the  central  object  which  would 
be  exhibited  by  his  brother  in  that  place  would 
be  the  Cross,  and  nothing  but  tlie  Cross.  The 
central  object  would  not  be  the  roll  of  eternal  decrees, 
not  the  tables  of  the  moral  law,  not  the  laver  of  bap- 
tism, not  the  throne  of  judgment ;  the  central  figure 
would  be  the  Cross  of  the  Redeemer.  Right  and  left 
they  would  find  the  roll  of  the  eternal  decrees,  the 
tables  of  the  law,  the  laver  of  baptism,  and  the  judg- 
ment throne  ;  but  the  Cross  of  Jesus  would  stand  in 
the  midst,  shedding  its  pure  and  harmonizing  light 
over  all  besides.  There  is  many  a  building  in  the 
Established  Church  of  this  land  where  one  may 
enter,  and  hear  as  clear  an  exposition  of  gospel  truth 
as  they  would  hear  from  Mr.  Spurgeon ;  but  in  many 
another  building  of  the  Established  Church  all  is 
priestly  power  and  sacramental  efficacy.  In  many 
another  all  that  is  preached  is  reason,  intuition,  the 
wisdom  of  man  and  not  of  God.  And  yet  all  these 
men  have  subscribed  to  the  same  articles ;  all  these 
men  belong  to  the  same  church.  Come  within  this 
building  whenever  they  might,  they  would  hear 
nothing  of  sacramental  efficacy  on  the  one  side,  or 
of  man's  reason  or  intuition  on  the  other ;  but  tlieir 
dear  brother  would  say,  '  I  am  determined  not  to 
know  anything  among  you,  save  Jesus  Christ,  and 
Him  crucified.' 


122  Life  and  Labors  of 

"  One  word  more.  We  are  living  in  the  days  of 
'  Essays  and  Reviews,'  —  living  in  the  days  of  a 
Rationalism  which,  for  my  part,  I  consider  far  more 
unscriptural  than  any  Romanism.  I  wish  to  explain 
myself,  —  I  mean  to  say  that  I  would  rather  be  a 
poor,  humble-minded  member  of  the  Church  of  Rome, 
believing  too  much,  than  I  would  be  one  of  those 
modern  philosophers,  too  wise  to  believe  anything 
at  all.  With  this  modern  philosophy  I  have  no 
patience  I  The  Bible,  according  to  these  men,  is 
an  old-fashioned  Book,  which  had  its  value  two 
thousand  years  ago,  but  now  its  value  is  diminished 
by  all  the  length  of  those  two  thousand  years. 
They  have  now  outshot  the  Bible,  say  these  men, 
—  they  have  got  ahead  of  the  Bible;  they  are  now 
more  intelligent  and  more  wise  than  the  Bible. 
Well,  let  them  take  it  as  they  say,  and  then  I  will 
add,  let  the  venerable  Book  have  fair  play  after  all. 
If  by  it  these  men  are  so  much  wiser  than  they 
would  have  been,  then,  I  say,  it  is  only  fair  that  they 
should  strip  themselves  of  all  they  have  learned  from 
the  Bible,  with  regard  to  the  attributes  of  God,  the 
origin  of  the  universe,  the  standard  of  morals,  the 
destiny  of  spirits  beyond  the  grave  ;  and  if  they  do 
this,  I  fancy  I  see  them  peeling  off  coat  after  coat, 
like  an  onion,  and  getting  '  small  by  degrees,'  but 
not  ^beautifully  less,'  and  I  do  not  know  what  will 
remain  of  them.  Why,  in  ancient  Greece  there  were 
intellects  as  subtle,  and  spirits  as  profound,  as  any 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeoyi.  123 

in  modern  times.  I  believe  that,  on  some  lines  of 
philosophical  inquiry,  none  have  been  able  to  surpass 
them  ;  but  when  those  men  entered  on  the  doctrines 
of  theology,  how  far  did  they  get?  Why,  just  as 
far  as  this,  '  The  world  by  wisdom  knew  not  God/ 
That  was  as  far  as  they  got.  The  youngest  Sunday- 
school  child,  I  was  going  to  say,  knows  more  about 
God  than  did  Socrates  and  Plato.  And  if  these  men 
know  more  about  God  than  Socrates  and  Plato, 
where  did  they  get  their  knowledge,  except  where 
the  little  Sunday-scholar  got  his,  from  the  Scriptures  ? 
It  is  easy  for  them  to  stand  on  the  mount  of  Revela- 
tion, and  then  spurn  the  ground  on  which  they  stand ; 
but  let  them  cut  that  ground  from  under  them,  and 
down  they  would  go  into  the  pit." 

On  the  following  day,  Wednesday,  27th  March,  a 
meeting  was  held,  in  which  representatives  of  the 
neighboring  ministers  expressed  their  sympathy  with 
Mr.  Spurgeon  and  his  enterprise.  Dr.  Edward  Steane 
presided.  We  must  refer  the  reader  to  the  full 
report,  published  separately,  and  to  be  had  of  the 
publishers,  for  the  full  details,  and  content  ourselves 
by  giving  a  portion  of  the  address  delivered  by 
the  Rev.  George  Rogers,  who  was  for  many  years 
the  theological  tutor  of  the  Pastors'  College. 

Mr.  Rogers  said  :  — 

"  He  had  been  told  that  the  building  was  an  ex- 
travagant affair,  a  nine  days'  wonder,  and  that  be- 
fore many  months  had  passed  it  would  be  converted 


124  Life  and  Labors  of 

into  a  penny  theatre.  A  man's  prophecy  was  often 
the  intimation  of  his  desire ;  the  wish  was  father 
to  the  thought.  Such  a  remark  might  apply  if  it 
had  been  a  simple  speculation,  erected  for  an  untried 
object ;  but  I  believe  it  to  be  the  result  of  a  gradual 
and  solid  growth.  A  giant  infancy  and  giant  youth 
required  a  habitation  of  its  own  when  it  came  to 
manhood.  I  feel,  and  all  must  feel,  that  this  magnif- 
icent structure  has  been  raised  as  a  public  hom- 
age to  the  doctrines  which  Mr.  Spurgeon  preaches, 
and  to  the  earnest  manner  in  which  he  has  pro- 
claimed them.  This  house  is  built,  not  for  him,  but 
for  the  God  whom  he  serves ;  not  for  him,  but  for 
the  Saviour  whom  he  loves  ;  not  for  him,  but  for  the 
Holy  Spirit  on  whom  he  relies ;  not  for  him,  but  for 
the  church  over  which  he  presides ;  not  for  him,  but 
for  the  souls  by  whom  he  is  encompassed.  It  was  a 
noble  memorial  of  the  unseen  realities  of  the  faith 
of  the  gospel.  To  every  passer-by  it  would  be  a 
witness  that  the  Tabernacle  of  God  was  with  man, 
and  that  He  would  dwell  among  them.  To  every 
eye  it  would  tell  of  the  liberty  and  independence 
which  Protestant  Dissenters  could  claim  in  this  land, 
and  of  the  readiness  of  the  Christian  public  to  sup- 
port doctrines  of  such  a  nature  when  earnestly 
preached.  Some  ascribed  it  to  the  infatuation  of 
the  people.  Why,  Englishmen  were  not  such  fools 
as  to  give  their  money  without  consideration,  and 
without  an  approval  of  the  object !     Some  time  ago, 


Pastor   0.  H.  Spurgeon.  125 

in  a  continental  city,  the  priest  of  a  certain  cathedral 
got  up  a  subscription  for  a  golden  crown  to  be  put 
on  the  head  of  the  Virgin.  A  solemn  festival  Avas 
held  on  the  occasion  of  the  coronation,  at  which  the 
king  and  his  courtiers  were  present.  But  one  man 
retired  from  the  scene  to  weep ;  and  when  asked  why 
he  wept,  he  said,  '  They  have  put  a  golden  crown  on 
the  head  of  the  Virgin,  but  there  is  no  crown  for  the 
infant  Jesus.'  But  here,  what  they  had  done  w^as 
to  put  a  crown  on  the  head  of  Christ,  and  as  they 
would  often  sing  in  that  place,  to  '  crown  Him  Lord 
of  all ! '    • 

"  The  building  gave  the  lie  to  those  who  said  the 
doctrines  of  grace  were  inimical  to  good  works. 
Our  friend  Mr.  Spurgeon  preaches  all  the  doctrines 
of  grace.  Election  and  Particular  Redemption  come 
from  his  lips  in  trumpet  tones.  Some  said  that  those 
doctrines  Avere  destructive  of  all  good  works,  —  that 
people  who  listened  to  such  doctrines  did  nothing. 
His  answer  to  these  objections  was,  let  them  look 
at  this  building.  Election  would  never  have  built 
it,  except  by  seeking  to  make  their  calling  and  elec- 
tion sure.  Particular  Redemption  would  never  have 
built  it  without  the  particular  love  it  w^as  calculated 
to  inspire.  The  doctrine  of  Perseverance  would  never 
have  built  it  without  the  act  of  perseverance.  Faith 
would  never  have  built  it  without  works.  One  of  his 
students,  who  came  late  one  morning,  said  his  clock 
did  not  go  right.     I  told  him  it  was  an  Antinomian 


126  Life  and  Labors  of 

clock,  —  it  was  without  good  works.  The  creed  of 
Mr.  Spiirgeon  was  not  Antinomian,  and  that  building 
was  a  witness  to  it.  Nor  would  works  without  faith 
have  built  it.  No  tree  could  grow  without  being  well 
watered  at  the  roots ;  and  if  they  wished  this  tree 
of  theirs  to  grow  and  bear  much  fruit,  they  must 
bring  down  the  rains  and  dews  of  heaven  by  their 
prayers.  Why  were  they,  the  neighboring  ministers 
and  churches,  there,  but  to  show  that  the  object  was 
not  to  set  up  altar  against  altar.  It  was  to  publish 
the  same  doctrine  that  they  preached.  The  God 
whom  we  all  honor  is  to  be  honored  in  this  place. 
The  Saviour  whom  Ave  love  is  to  be  exalted  in  this 
place.  The  gospel  which  we  love  is  to  be  preached 
here.  The  atonement  on  which  we  rest  our  hope  is 
to  be  here  the  open  fountain  for  sin  and  for  unclean- 
ness.  I  therefore  feel  an  interest  in  the  building ; 
and  all  my  brethren  in  the  ministry  must  have  a 
common  interest  in  it.  Although  one  star  might 
differ  from  another  star  in  glory,  it  was  their  com- 
bined rays  that  guided  the  pilgrim  in  the  desert,  and 
the  mariner  upon  the  wave. 

"  They  had  done  a  good  work,  and  had  worked 
long,  and  hard,  and  unitedly.  What  was  next  to 
be  done  ?  They  had  now  no  more  to  do  with 
begging,  with  bricks  and  mortar,  and  with  bazaars. 
Let  them  turn  all  their  energies  into  spiritual  chan- 
nels ;  let  the  hands  that  had  been  stretched  out  to 
labor  be  lifted  u])  in   prayer ;  let  the  feet  that  had 


Pastor   C.  H.  S pur g eon.  127 

borne  them  to  the  houses  of  the  rich  to  collect  gold, 
now  carry  them  to  the  habitations  of  the  poor,  to 
give  them  that  consolation  whose  price  is  above 
rubies.  Having  such  a  start,  great  things  are  ex- 
pected of  you.  The  eyes  of  the  Church  and  the 
world  are  upon  you.  There  is  much  grace  needed, 
and  it  is  to  be  had  with  faith  and  prayer.  I  came 
to  this  meeting  from  the  bed  of  an  aged  lady,  and 
when  I  told  her  I  was  coming  to  Mr.  Spurgeon's 
Tabernacle,  she  said,  '  May  it  be  a  house  in  which 
thousands  shall  be  turned  to  God ! '  That  is  my 
wish,  and  I  am  sure  it  is  the  wish  of  you  all." 

How  largely  and  blessedly  that  wish  has  been  ful- 
filled, the  intervening  thirty  years  have  abundantly 
shown,  but  eternity  alone  will  fully  rcA^eal  it. 

Other  meetings  followed  at  short  intervals,  inter- 
spersed with  a  sermon  now  and  then  on  special  sub- 
jects,—  notably  one  by  Rev.  Hugh  Stowell  Brown, 
of  Liverpool,  on  "  Christian  Baptism."  There  was 
a  meeting  of  the  church,  over  which  Rev.  John 
Spurgeon,  the  pastor's  father,  presided.  Then  came 
meetings  for  the  "  Exposition  of  the  Doctrines  of 
Grace,"  when,  for  the  first  time,  the  pastor's  brother, 
Rev.  J.  A.  Spurgeon,  then  of  Southampton,  took  a 
prominent  part. 

More  than  thirty  years  have  passed  since  these 
opening  services  were  held,  and  the  congregation 
has  in  no  degree  diminished.  Up  to  the  time  of  the 
pastor's   recent   long   and    serious   illness,   the   vast 


128  Life  of  Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon. 

building  continued  crowded;  as,  indeed,  it  was  all 
the  time  that  other  able  and  honored  brethren  oc- 
cupied his  pulpit  while  he  lay  sick,  or  rested  in  his 
Riviera  retreat.  The  church  also  has  constantly 
increased,  until  foi'  many  years  there  have  been 
more  than  five  thousand  members,  so  that,  could 
they  all  attend  the  Lord's  Sui)per  at  one  time,  every 
seat  in  the  Tabernacle  would  be  occupied. 

The  total  cost  of  all  the  buildings  then  com- 
pleted was  £31,332  4s.  lOd.,  which  was  all  raised 
by  voluntary  effort. 

On  Wednesday,  April  10th,  the  church  met  with  a 
large  number  of  believers  of  various  denominations 
to  commune  at  the  Lord's  table,  when  Dr.  Steane 
remarked  that,  "  in  the  largest  of  Nonconformist 
sanctuaries,  they  met  as  the  largest  number  of 
believers  who  had  ever  communed  together  at  one 
time  since  the  days  of  their  glorified  Lord." 

Since  these  opening  services  many  memorable 
gatherings  have  been  held  in  the  Tabernacle  ;  but 
probably  no  one  of  them  has  equalled  in  interest 
and  impressiveness  the  joyous  and  solemn  assem- 
blies that  will  gather  there  for  united  thanksgiving 
when  the  beloved  pastor  is  once  more  able  to  take 
his  accustomed  place  after  his  long  and  trying 
affliction. 


CHAPTER   XII. 

THE  pastors'    college. 


AS  one  of  the  results  of  the  rekindled  fire  on  the 
altar  of  the  Lord  at  New  Park  Street  Chapel, 
several  young  men  of  promise  and  ability  for  useful- 
ness were  gathered  into  the  church  within  the  first 
three  months  of  Mr.  Spurgeon's  ministry  there. 
Among  these  was  a  young  man  only  four  months 
younger  than  Mr.  Spurgeon,  who  himself  was  only 
one  month  over  twenty.  This  youth  asked  counsel  of 
the  young  pastor.  Mr.  Spurgeon's  reply  will  show 
how  well  fitted  he  was  to  deal  with  persons  in  such  a 

condition  of  mind. 

75  Dover  Road,  Borough, 
July  Uth,  1854. 

Dear  Sir,  — '  I  am  glad  that  you  have  been  able  to  write  to 
me  and  state  your  feelings.  Though  my  hands  are  always  full,  it 
will  ever  give  me  joy  to  receive  such  notes  as  yours. 

You  ask  a  very  important  question,  "  Are  you  one  of  God's 
elect  ? "  This  is  a  question  neither  you  nor  I  can  answer  at 
present.  I  will  ask  you  an  easier  one,  "  Are  you  a  sinner  ? "  Can 
you  say  "Yes"?  All  say  yes;  but  then  they  do  not  know 
what  the  word  means.  A  sinner  is  one  who  has  broken  all  his 
Maker's  commands,  despised  His  name,  and  run  into  rebellion 
against  the  Most  High.  A  sinner  deserves  hell,  yea,  the  hottest 
place  in  hell  ;  and  if  he  be  saved,  it  must  be*  entirely  by  unmerited 


130  Lif^  ciiid  Labors  of 

mercy.  Now,  if  you  are  such  a  siuner,  I  am  glad  to  be  able  to 
tell  you  the  way  of  salvation.  "  Believe  on  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ." 

I  think  you  have  not  yet  really  understood  what  believing 
means.  You  are,  I  trust,  really  awakened  ;  but  you  do  not  see 
the  door  yet.  1  advise  you  seriously  to  be  much  alone,  I  mean  as 
much  as  you  can  ;  let  your  groans  go  up  to  heaven  if  you  cannot 
pray ;  attend  as  many  services  as  possible,  and  if  you  go  with  an 
earnest  desire  for  a  blessing,  it  will  come  very  soon.  But  why  not 
believe  now  ?  You  have  only  to  believe  that  Jesus  is  able  and 
willing  to  save,  and  then  trust  yourself  to  Him. 

Harbor  not  that  dark  suggestion  to  forsake  the  house  of  God ; 
remember  you  thereby  turn  your  back  on  heaven,  and  your  face 
to  hell,  the  moment  you  do  that.  I  pray  God  that  He  will  keep 
you.  If  the  Lord  had  meant  to  destroy  you.  He  would  not  have 
showed  you  such  things  as  these.  If  you  are  but  a  smoking  flax 
there  is  hope.  Touch  the  hem  of  llis  garment.  Look  to  the 
brazen  serpent. 

My  dear  fellow-sinner,  slight  not  this  season  of  awakening  ;  up 
and  be  in  earnest.  It  is  your  soul,  your  own  soul,  your  eternal 
welfare,  that  is  at  stake.  There  is  the  Cross,  and  a  bleeding  God- 
Man  upon  it  ;  look  to  Him  and  be  saved  !  There  is  the  Holy 
Spirit  able  to  give  you  every  grace.  Look  in  prayer  to  the  sacred 
Three-One  God,  and  then  you  will  be  delivered. 
I  am 

Your  anxious  friend, 

Write  again.  C.  H.  Spurgeon. 

The  young  man  was  really  in  earnest  to  find  the 
Saviour,  and  he  was  soon  after  able  to  rest  on  Christ. 
When  his  load  of  sin  was  gone  he  did  "  write  again," 
and  the  pastor  replied  as  follows :  — 

75  Dover  Road,  August  7th,  154. 
My  dear  Sir,  —  Your  letters  have  given  me  great  joy.     I  trust 
I  see  in  you  the  marks  of  a  son  of  God,  and  I  earnestly  pray  that 
you  may  have  the  evidence  within  that  you  are  born  of  God. 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  131 

There  is  no  reason  why  you  should  not  be  baptized.  "  If  thou 
believest  with  all  thine  heart,  thou  mayest."  Think  very  seriously 
of  it,  for  it  is  a  solemn  matter.  Count  the  cost.  You  are  now 
about  to  be  buried  to  the  world,  and  you  may  well  say,  "  What 
manner  of  persons  ought  we  to  be  in  all  holy  conversation  and 
crodliness  !  "  The  friends  who  were  with  you  in  t&e  days  of  your 
carnal  pleasure  will  strive  to  entice  you  from  Christ.  1  pray  that 
the  grace  of  God  may  be  mightily  manifest  in  you,  keeping  you 
steadfast,  immovable,  always  abounding  in  the  w^ork  of  the  Lord. 

I  should  like  to  see  you  on  Thursday  evening  after  six  o'clock 
in  the  vestry. 

I  am 

Yours  faithfully, 

C.  H.  Spurgeon. 

The  personal  interview  was  satisfactory  to  Mr. 
Spurgeon  ;  he  believed  in  the  genuineness  of  the  work 
of  grace  in  the  heart  of  his  young  friend,  though  it 
was  evident  that  his  mind  needed  information  and 
cultivation.  The  young  man  was  baptized  and  ad- 
mitted into  the  church,  and  at  once  commenced 
Christian  work,  —  visiting  the  sick,  distributing  tracts, 
teaching  in  the  Sunday-school,  and  after  a  time  he 
became  engaged  in  outdoor  preaching.  He  grew  in 
grace  and  in  knowledge,  and  discovered  gifts  likely  to 
be  useful  for  evangelization  and  edification.  But  he 
needed  teaching  and  training,  and  he  thankfully  ac- 
cepted an  offer  from  Mr.  Spurgeon  thus  to  be  helped 
for  the  service  of  the  church. 
-  At  first  Mr.  Spurgeon  took  him  in  hand  personally ; 
but  his  duties  and  engagements  increasing,  he  placed 
him  under   the  charge  of   Rev.  C.  H.  Hosken,  then 


132  Life  and  Labors  of 

pastor  of  the  Baptist  Church  at  Crayford,  Kent.  This 
was  really  the  commencement  of  the  Pastors'  College, 
and  the  young  man  above  mentioned,  Mr.  Thomas 
William  Medhurst,  was  the  first  student.  The  Rev. 
George  Rogers,  of  Albany  Congregational  Chapel, 
Camberwell,  whose  name  had  been  suggested  to  Mr. 
Spurgeon  by  the  Rev.  Jonathan  George,  of  Walworth, 
became,  after  a  short  time,  the  honored  principal  and 
theological  tutor.  Though  differing  from  Mr.  Spur- 
geon in  liis  views  on  baptism,  his  thorough  soundness 
in  the  faith,  and  his  unquestioned  capacity  for  the  work 
of  theological  instruction,  commended  him  to  Mr. 
Spurgeon,  who  found  in  him  all  he  expected,  and 
more.  Mr.  Rogers  recently  passed  away  in  his 
ninety -third  year,  having  been  for  several  years  suc- 
ceeded in  his  tutorship  by  Professor  Gracey,  a  man  of 
ripe  scholarship,  pleasing  manners,  sound  doctrine, 
genial  spirit,  and  able  alike  as  a  teacher,  a  preacher, 
and  a  writer. 

Mr.  Medhurst  has  held  on  his  way  with  honor  to 
himself  and  no  small  measure  of  usefulness,  holding 
pastorates  at  Kir^gston-on-Thames ;  Coleraine,  in  Ire- 
land ;  Glasgow  ;  and  Portsmouth ;  and  having  thus 
exercised  his  ministry  in  the  three  divisions  of  the 
United  Kingdom,  he  has  recently  settled  in  the  Prin- 
cipality, at  Cardiff. 

Of  the  other  early  students  of  the  College,  we  may 
name  Mr.  Davies,  of  Greenwich,  who  is  dead ;  Mr. 
Genders,  of  Ilfracombe  ;  Mr.  Archibald  Brown,  of  the 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon. 


133 


East  London  Tabernacle ;  Mr.  Cuff,  of  the  Shoreditcli 
Tabernacle  ;  Mr.  Burton,  whose  recent  death  was  a 
blow  to  many ;  and  Professors  Gracey  and  Marchant, 


o 
o 

'to 

« 
o 

H 

CO 

<i 

Oh 


who  are  now  tutors  of  the  College  in  which  thej  were 
formerly  students. 

Mr.  Spurgeon's   own    account  of  the  reasons  why 
he   started  a  new  school  for  the  sons  of  the  prophets, 


134  Life  and  Labors  of 

when  several  of  various  degrees  of  excellence  were 
already  in  existence,  ought  to  be  considered  as  a  suffi- 
cient answer  to  the  question,  Why  found  another 
college  ? 

"  No  college  at  that  time  appeared  to  me  to  be 
suitable  for  the  class  of  men  that  the  providence  and 
grace  of  God  drew  around  me.  They  were  mostly 
poor,  and  most  of  the  colleges  involved  necessarily  a 
considerable  outlay  to  the  student ;  for  even  where 
the  education  was  free,  books,  clothes,  and  other 
incidental  expenses  required  a  considerable  sum  per 
annum.  Moreover,  it  must  be  frankly  admitted  that 
my  views  of  the  gospel  and  of  the  mode  of  training 
preachers  were,  and  are,  somewhat  peculiar.  I  may 
have  been  uncharitable  in  my  judgment,  but  I  thought 
the  Calvinism  of  the  theoloo'v  usuallv  tauQ-ht  to  be 
very  doubtful,  and  the  fervor  of  the  generality  of 
the  students  to  be  far  behind  their  literary  attain- 
ments. It  seemed  to  me  that  preachers  of  the  grand 
old  truths  of  the  gospel,  ministers  suitable  for  the 
masses,  were  more  likely  to  be  found  in  an  institution 
where  preaching  and  divinity  would  be  the  main 
objects,  and  not  degrees  and  other  insignia  of  human 
learning.  I  felt  that,  without  interfering  with  the 
laudable  objects  of  other  colleges,*  I  could  do  good  in 
my  own  way.  These  and  other  considerations  led  me 
to  take  a  few  tried  young  men,  and  to  ])ut  them  under 
some  able  minister,  that  he  might  train  them  in  the 
Scriptures,  and   in   other  knowledge  helpful   to  the 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon. 


136 


understanding  and  proclamation  of  the  truth.  This 
step  appeared  plain,  but  how  the  work  was  to  be  con- 
ducted and  supported  was  the  question,  —  a  question, 
be  it  added,  solved  almost  before  it  occurred. 

"  Two  friends,  Mr.  Winsor  and  Mr.  W.  Olney,  both 
deacons  of  the  church,  promised  aid,  which,  with  what 


I  could  give  myself,  enabled  me  to  take  one  student, 
and  I  set  about  to  find  a  tutor.  In  Mr.  George 
Rogers,  then  the  pastor  of  the  Independent  Church, 
Albany  Road,  Camberwell,  God  sent  us  the  very  best 
man.  He  had  been  preparing  for  such  work,  and  was 
anxiously  waiting  for  it.  This  gentleman  ...  is  a 
man  of  Puritanic  stamp,  deeply  learned,  orthodox  in 


136  Life  and  Labors  of 

doctrine,  judicious,  witty,  devout,  earnest,  liberal  in 
spirit,  and  withal  juvenile  in  heart  to  an  extent  most 
remarkable  in  one  of  his  years.  My  connection  with 
him  has  been  one  of  uninterrupted  comfort  and 
delight.  The  most  sincere  affection  exists  between 
us ;  we  are  of  one  mind  and  of  one  heart ;  and  what  is 
equally  important,  he  has,  in  every  case,  secured,  not 
merely  the  respect,  but  the  filial  love  of  every  student. 
Into  this  beloved  minister's  house  the  first  students 
were  introduced,  and  for  a  considerable  period  they 
were  domiciled  as  members  of  his  family. 

''  Encouraged  by  the  readiness  with  which  the  young 
men  found  spheres  of  labor,  and  by  their  singular 
success  in  soul-winning,  I  enlarged-  the  number,  but 
the  whole  means  of  sustaining  them  came  from  my 
own  purse.  The  large  sale  of  my  sermons  in  America, 
together  with  my  dear  wife's  economy,  enabled  me 
to  spend  from  £600  to  X800  a  year  in  my  own 
favorite  work  ;  but  on  a  sudden  —  owing  to  my  de- 
nunciations of  the  then  existing  slavery  in  the  States 
—  my  entire  resources  from  that  '  brook  Cherith  ' 
were  dried  up.  I  paid  as  large  sums  as  I  could  from 
my  own  income,  and  resolved  to  spend  all  1  had,  and 
then  take  the  cessation  of  my  means  as  a  voice  from 
the  Lord  to  stay  the  effort ;  as  I  am  firmly  persuaded 
that  we  ought,  under  no  pretence,  to  go  into  debt. 
On  one  occasion  I  proposed  the  sale  of  my  horse  and 
carriage,  although  these  were  almost  absolute  neces- 
saries to  me  on  account  of  my  continual  journeys  in 


Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeon.  137 

preaching  the  Word.  This,  my  friend  Mr.  Rogers 
would  not  hear  of,  and  actually  offered  to  be  the  loser 
rather  than  this  should  be  done.  Then  it  was  that  I 
told  my  difficulties  to  my  people,  and  the  '  Weekly 
Offering '  commenced,  but  the  incomings  from  that 
source  were  so  meagre  as  to  be  hardly  worth  calcula- 
ting upon.  I  was  reduced  to  the  last  pound,  when  a 
letter  came  from  a  banker  in  the  City,  informing  me 
that  a  lady,  whose  name  I  have  never  been  able  to 
discover,  had  deposited  a  sum  of  <£200,  to  be  used  for 
the  education-  of  young  men  for  the  ministry.  How 
did  my  heart  leap  for  joy  !  I  threw  myself  then  and 
henceforth  upon  the  bounteous  care  of  the  Lord, 
whom  I  desired,  with  my  whole  heart,  to  glorify  by 
this  eft'ort.  Some  weeks  after,  another  <£100  came  in 
from  the  same  bank,  as  I  was  informed,  from  another 
hand.  Soon  after,  a  friend  began  to  provide  an 
annual  supper  for  the  friends  of  the  College,  at  which 
considerable  sums  have,  from  year  to  year,  been 
given.  A  supper  was  given  by  my  liberal  publishers, 
Messrs.  Passmore  and  Alabaster,  to  celebrate  the 
publishing  of  my  five-hundredth  weekly  sermon,  at 
which  £500  were  raised  and  presented  to  the  funds. 
The  College  grew  every  month,  and  the  number  of 
the  students  rapidly  increased  from  one  to  forty. 
Friends  known  and  unknown,  from  far  and  near,  were 
moved  to  give  little  or  much  to  my  work,  and  so  the 
funds  increased  as  the  need  enlarged.  Then  another 
earnest  deacon  of  the  church  espoused  as  his  special 


138  Life  and  Labors  of 

work  the  '  Weekly  Offering,'  and  by  the  unanimous 
voice  of  the  church  under  my  care,  the  College  was 
adopted  as  its  own  child.  Since  that  hour  the  '  Weekly 
Offering'  has  been  a  steady  source  of  income,  till,  in 
the  year  1869,  the  amount  reached  exactly  <£  1,869. 

"  There  have  been,  during  this  period,  times  of 
great  trial  of  my  faith,  but  after  a  season  of  strait- 
ness,  never  amounting  to  absolute  want,  the  Lord 
has  always  interposed,  and  sent  me  large  sums  (on 
one  occasion  X1,000)  from  unknown  donoi's." 

Mr.  Spurgeon  was  somewhat  apprehensive  that 
when  the  work  of  the  Stockwell  Orphanage  was  thrust 
upon  him,  funds  might  be  diverted  from  the  College 
to  tlie  newer  institution.  Such  may  have  been  the 
case  to  some  extent,  but  God  has  not  allowed  either 
of  them  to  suffer  want. 

'*  If  the  Lord  wills  the  work  to  be  continued,"  says 
Mr.  Spurgeon,  ''  He  will  send  His  servant  a  due  por- 
tion of  the  gold  and  silver  which  are  all  His  own ; 
and  therefore,  as  I  wait  on  Him  in  prayer,  the  all- 
gracious  Provider  will  supply  all  my  needs." 

While  speaking  of  pecuniary  matters,  he  adds 
that,  "  as  many  of  the  young  men  trained  in  the 
College  have  raised  new  congregations,  and  gathered 
fresh  churches,  another  need  has  arisen,  —  namely, 
money  for  building  chapels.  It  is  ever  so  in  Christ's 
work  ;  one  link  draws  on  another,  one  effort  makes 
another  needed.  For  chapel-building  the  College 
funds  could   do  but  little,  though   they  have  freely 


Pastor   0.  H.  Spurgeon.  139 

been  used  to  support  men  Avliile  they  were  collecting 
congregations." 

"  Pecuniary  needs,  however,"  Mr.  Spurgeon  con- 
tinues, "  have  made  up  but  a  small  part  of  our  cares. 
Many  have  been  my  personal  exercises  in  selecting 
the  men.  Candidates  have  always  been  plentiful, 
and  the  choice  has  been  wide ;  but  it  is  a  serious 
responsibility  to  reject  any,  and  yet  more  to  accept 
them  for  training.  Wlien  mistakes  have  been  made, 
a  second  burden  has  been  laid  upon  me  in  the  dis- 
missal of  those  who  appeared  to  be  unfit.  Even  with 
the  most  careful  management,  and  all  the  assistance 
of  tutors  and  friends,  no  human  foresight  can  secure 
that  in  everv  case  a  man  shall  be  what  we  believed 
and  hoped.  A  brother  may  be  exceedingly  useful  as 
an  occasional  preacher,  he  may  distinguish  himself 
as  a  diligent  student,  he  may  succeed  at  first  in  the 
ministry,  and  yet,  when  trials  of  temper  and  character 
occur  in  the  pastorate,  he  may  be  found  wanting. 
We  have  had  comparatively  few  causes  for  regret  of 
this  sort,  but  there  have  been  some  such,  and  these 
pierce  us  with  many  sorrows.  I  devoutly  bless  God 
that  He  has  sent  to  the  College  some  of  the  holiest, 
soundest,  and  most  self-denying  preachers  I  know ; 
and  I  pray  that  He  may  continue  to  do  so;  but  it 
would  be  more  than  a  miracle  if  all  should  excel. 
While  thus  speaking  of  trials  connected  with  the  men 
themselves,  it  is  due  to  our  gracious  God  to  bear 
testimony  that  these  have  been  comparatively  light, 


140  Life  and  Labors  of 

and  are  not  worthy  to  be  compared  with  the  great 
joy  which  we  experience  in  seeing  so  many  ^  brethren 
still  serving  the  Lord  according  to  their  measm^e  of 
gift,  and  .  .  .  contending  for  the  faith  once  for  all 
delivered  to  the  saints ;  nor  is  the  joy  less  in  remem- 
bering that  several  ^  have  sweetly  fallen  asleep  after 
havinsf  fouo-ht  a  a-ood  fi<?ht.  At  this  hour  some  of  our 
most  flourishing  Baptist  cl lurches  are  presided  over 
by  pastors  trained  in  our  College  ;  and  as  years  shall 
add  ripeness  of  experience  and  stability  of  character, 
others  will  be  found  to  stand  in  the  front  rank  of 
the  Lord's  host." 

The  students  of  the  Pastors'  College,  unlike  those 
of  other  colleges,  are  generally  boarded  out  in  twos 
and  threes,  in  the  houses  of  friends  around  the 
Tabernacle,  at  a  moderate  weekly  sum.  Mr.  Spur- 
geon  believes  that  the  plan  of  separate  lodging  is 
preferable  to  the  usual  method  of  having  all  under 
one  roof.  By  the  latter  method  men  are  isolated 
from  domestic  scenes  and  habits,  and  are  all  too  apt 
to  fall  into  superabundant  levity.  The  circumstances 
of  the  families  where  the  vouno;  men  are  entertained 
are  generally  such  that  the  future  ministers  are  not 
elevated  above  the  social  position  they  are  likely  to 
occupy  in  future  years,  and  are  kept  in  connection 
with  the  struggles  and  conditions  of  everyday  life. 

1  In  the  report  for  1889-90,  the  number  is  607,  besides  30  non- 
pastors,  but  reguhirly  engaged  in  the  Lord's  work. 

2  Pastors,  65;  students,  7.     Report  for  1889-90. 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  141 

Devotional  habits  are  cultivated  among  the  stu- 
dents, and  they  are  urged  to  do  as  much  evangelistic 
work  as  possible.  For  this,  however,  they  have  little 
time,  though  abundant  opportunities.  The  usual  term 
of  study  is  two  or  three  years,  in  some  cases  extend- 
ing to  four,  according  to  the  amount  of  education 
previously  secured,  and  also  as  the  capacity  for  more 
advanced  studies  may  suggest ;  but  there  is  no  hard 
and  fast  rule. 

The  Tabernacle  Church  supplies  a  good  number 
of  candidates,  and  these  are  commonly  such  as  have 
attended  the  Evening  Classes,  where  young  men  can 
devote  the  hours  after  business  to  the  acquirement  of 
general  knowledge,  and  the  study  of  the  elementary 
branches  of  theology. 

There  have  been  many  complaints  made  in  the 
denominational  papers  of  the  supply  of  ministers 
exceeding  the  demand.  There  is  some  truth  in  this  ; 
but  it  must  be  remembered  that  there  are  ministers 
and  ministers ;  and,  taking  the  world  as  the  field, 
we  need  still  to  pray  the  Lord  of  the  harvest  to 
thrust  forth  laborers  into  His  vineyard.  But  they 
must  be  laborers  ;  and  it  by  no  means  follows  that 
every  man,  however  small  his  sphere,  must  devote 
all  his  time  and  energies  to  the  cultivation  of  his 
one  little  patch.  Either  he  must  break  up  fresh 
ground,  or,  if  this  is  denied  him,  there  is  no  sufficient 
reason  why  he  should  not  aid  his  income  by  some 
suitable  secular  calling.     But  Mr.  Spurgeon  believes 


142  Life  and  Labors  of 

that  there  is  still  great  need,  indeed,  growing  neces- 
sity for  more  men,  only  they  must  be  of  the  right 
stamp.     Here  are  his  own  words  :  — 

"  If  the  Lord  would  but  send  us  funds  commen- 
surate, there  are  hundreds  of  neighborhoods  needing 
the  pure  gospel,  which  we  could  by  His  grace  change 
from  deserts  into  gardens.  How  far  this  is  a  call 
upon  the  reader^  let  him  judge  as  in  the  sight  of  God. 
Shall  there  be  the  gifts  and  graces  of  the  Spirit  given 
to  the  Church,  and  shall  there  not  also  be  sufficient 
bestowed  of  the  earthly  treasure  ?  '  How  much  owest 
thou  unto  my  Lord  ?  '  " 

As  to  the  quality  of  the  pi^achers  sent  out  by  this 
College,  facts  speak,  though  as  a  matter  of  course 
all  are  not  equally  gifted,  nor  all  alike  successful. 
Fitness  for  any  particular  sphere  is  a  very  important 
condition  of  success.  A  man  may  fail,  or  have  little 
success  in  one  sphere,  but  in  another  the  results  of 
his  labors  may  be  manifold  and  lasting. 

The  good  Earl  of  Shaftesbury  was  a  well-qualified 
judge  of  Christian  work,  and  an  equally  impartial 
witness.  Speaking  in  Finsbury  Chapel,  some  ten  or 
eleven  yeai*s  ago,  he  said  :  "  It  is  an  utter  fallacy  to 
suppose  that  the  people  of  England  will  ever  be 
brought  to  a  sense  of  order  and  discipline  by  the 
repetition  of  miserable  services,  by  bits  of  wax 
candle,  by  rags  of  Popery,  and  by  gymnastics  in  the 
church ;  nothing  is  adapted  to  meet  the  wants  of 
the  people  but  the  gospel  message  brought  home  to 


Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeon.  143 

their  hearts,  and  he  knew  of  none  who  had  done 
better  service  in  this  evangelistic  work  than  the 
pupils  trained  in  Mr.  Spurgeon's  College.  They  had 
a  singular  faculty  for  addressing  the  population,  and 
going  to  the  very  heart  of  the  people." 

It  is  now  much  too  late  to  argue  for  the  need  or 
the  utility  of  the  institution.  A  greater  than  man 
decided  that  long  ago ;  and,  as  the  writer  can  bear 
witness,  the  quality  of  the  men,  as  preachers  of  the 
gospel  and  teachers  of  the  people,  improves  from 
year  to  year ;  and  the  increase  of  the  churches 
pastored  by  men  who  have  been  trained  at  the 
Pastors'  College  maintains  a  high  ratio,  never  sur- 
passed, and  seldom  equalled  in  churches  presided 
over  by  men  from  other  colleges.  We  speak  of  this 
as  a  fact,  and  to  provoke  to  holy  emulation. 

Mr.  Spurgeon  has  been  specially  favored  by  the 
gentlemen  who  have  been  sent  to  him  as  his  helpers. 
After  having  mentioned  several  by  name,  he  adds : 
"  Lastly,  but  not  least,  I  adore  the  goodness  of  God 
which  sent  me  so  dear  and  efficient  a  fellow-helper 
as  my  brother  in  the  flesh  and  in  the  Lord,  J.  A. 
Spurgeon.  His  work  has  greatly  relieved  me  of 
anxiety,  and  his  superior  educational  qualifications 
have  tended  to  raise  the  tone  of  the  instruction  given." 

For  some  years  the  educational  work  of  the  College 
was  carried  on  in  the  dark,  subterranean  rooms  under 
the  Tabernacle,  but  when  the  new  College  buildings 
were  completed,  these  rooms  were  vacated. 


144 


Life  and  Labors  of 


The  College  buildings  are  somewhat  to  the  rear, 
but  contiguous  to  the  Tabernacle  property.  There 
are  two  fine  halls,  excellent  class-rooms,  a  handsome 
library,  and  all  the  requirements  of  a  college.  The 
buildinoj   was   erected    and   furnished    at   a   cost   of 


£15,000,  all  of  which  was  paid  as  soon  as  the  work 
was  finished. 

"  The  way  in  which  the  money  was  raised,"  says 
Mr.  Spurgeon,  "  was  another  instance  of  Divine  good- 
ness. <£  3,000  was  given  as  a  memorial  to  a  dear 
and  lamented  husband.  c£ 2,000  was  a  legacy  to  the 
College  from  a  reader  of  the  sermons.  The  ministers 
who  had  formerly  been  students  came  to  our  help  in 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spur g eon.  145 

a  princely  fashion.  Large  amounts  were  made  up 
by  the  offerings  of  Tabernacle  friends  on  days  when 
the  pastor  invited  the  members  and  adherents  to 
be  the  guests  at  the  College.  In  answer  to  prayer, 
the  gold  and  silver  have  been  ready  when  needed. 
How  my  heart  exalts  and  blesses  the  name  of  the 
Lord  !  " 

Of  the  men  educated  in  the  College,  a  large  majority 
are  pastors  in  England,  and  others  in  Scotland,  Ire- 
land, and  Wales.  A  considerable  number  are  mis- 
sionaries in  India,  China,  South  America,  the  West 
Indies,  Spain,  France,  North  Africa,  South  Africa,  and 
the  Conge  State  ;  while  about  forty  are  doing  pastoral 
work  or  evangelizing  in  the  United  States  and  the 
Dominion  of  Canada,  and  several  are  occupying  prom- 
inent stations  in  Australia  and  New  Zealand.  In 
addition  to  all  these,  the  names  of  quite  a  number  of 
men  as  evangelists,  such  as  Messrs.  Fullerton  and 
Smith,  are  well  known  and  esteemed  for  their  char- 
acter and  successful  labors  in  all  parts  of  the  United 
Kingdom.  Nor  mast  we  omit  to  mention  Mr.  Spur- 
geon's  twin  sons,  one  of  whom  is  the  pastor  of  a  large 
and  flourishing  church  at  Greenwich,  and  the  other, 
after  building  the  Auckland  Tabernacle,  and  being 
very  successful  as  pastor  there,  is  engaged  in  evange- 
listic work  in  New  Zealand. 

Pastor  Charles  Spurgeon  has  the  advantage  of  his 
father's  name  and  fame  ;  which  may  not  always  be  an 
advantage,  however,  for  the  public  are  not  always  just 

10 


146  Life  of  Pastor    C.  H.  Simrgeon. 

in  their  expectations.  He  enjoys,  nevertheless,  con- 
siderable popularity  ;  and  what  is  far  better  and  more 
healthy  to  a  minister's  heart  and  life,  he  fulfils  his 
ministry  with  growing  acceptance  and  usefulness. 
The  writer  has  pleasant  recollections  of  his  visit  to 
South  Street,  Greenwich,  during  the  time  the  jimior 
Spurgeon  was  on  his  trip  round  the  world  in  search  of 
health.  The  large  chapel  was  well  filled,  both  morn- 
ing and  evening ;  that  is,  nearly  every  available  seat 
was  occupied  :  the  audience  was  one  to  which  it  was 
easy  to  preach,  and  the  singing  was  hearty  in  the  ex- 
treme. Within  the  Metropolitan  area,  there  are  few 
Baptist  churches  so  well  attended,  so  well  managed, 
and  so  prosperous  in  their  various  enterprises.  May 
the  blessing  of  his  father's  God,  his  mother's  prayers, 
and  those  of  all  the  Spurgeons  who  have  preceded 
them,  ever  rest  upon  him  and  his  brother  ! 

So  far  as  results  can  be  tabulated,  the  additions  to 
the  membership  of  churches  in  the  Baptist  denomi- 
nation, which  are  due,  under  God,  to  the  earnest 
labors  of  the  Pastors'  College  men,  are  such  as  to  fill 
sympathizing  hearts  with  gladness.  The  total  number 
baptized  from  the  commencement  is  over  90,000  and 
the  total  increase  of  these  churches  during  the  same 
period  exceeds  150,000.  The  whole  Baptist  denomi- 
nation has  increased  at  a  much  smaller  rate  than  the 
churches  connected  with  the  Pastors'  College. 

Undoubtedly,  no  one  of  the  many  institutions  con- 
nected with  the  Tabernacle  lies  so  near  the  Pastor's 


CHARLES    SPURGEON. 


THOMAS    SPURGEON. 


148  Life  and  Labors  of 

heart  as  the  College,  and  for  its  future  good  we  know 
he  is  prayerfully  solicitous.  May  he  never,  for  one 
moment,  be  suffered  to  doubt  that  he  still  has  the 
sympathy  of  the  Lord's  own  people  in  this  work,  and 
may  it  be  shown  in  the  most  practical  of  all  ways,  by 
earnest  prayer  and  liberal  gifts  !  Not  less  than  from 
£120  to  X150  are  required  every  week  to  carry  on 
this  work. 

A  large  number  of  the  men  trained  at  the  College 
meet  in  conference  year  by  year.  The  attendance  has 
been  increased  of  late  years  by  the  addition  of  a  com- 
pany of  ministers  not  trained  in  the  Pastors'  College, 
but  who  are  closely  in  sympathy  with  Mr.  Spurgeon 
in  his  thorough  evangelical  views,  and  his  bold  witness- 
bearing  for  the  truth  once  for  all  delivered  to  the 
saints.  These  Conferences  are  blessed  means  of 
grace,  and  a  holy,  humble,  devotional,  and  joyful  spirit 
pervades  the  assemblies,  and  unites  all  hearts.  The 
annual  addresses  of  the  President  are  looked  forward 
to  for  many  months,  and  remembered  long  afterwards. 
That  of  1891  has  been  published  in  a  separate  form, 
under  the  title  of  "  The  Greatest  Fight  in  the  World," 
and  has  had  a  large  sale. 

In  the  "  Notes  "  of  ''  The  Sword  and  the  Trowel  " 
for  October,  1891,  are  the  following  references  to  this 
address  :  — 

"  During  the  past  month  we  have  received  the  Ger- 
man translation  of  '  The  Greatest  Fight  in  the  World.' 
In  sending  it,  the  translator  says, '  The  first  edition  of 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  149 

5,000  is  sold  out ;  this  is  one  of  the  second  5,000.' 
The  French  translation,  made  by  Pasteur  R.  Saillens,  of 
Paris,  will  soon  be  issued ;  and  permission  has  been 
given  for  a  Danish  translation  to  be  published. 

'•'  The  little  book  has  been  reprinted  by  more  than 
one  firm  in  the  United  States ;  and  it  has  been  most 
favorably  reviewed.  '  The  New  York  Observer  '  says 
of  it :  '  It  is  the  mature,  deliberate,  long-considered, 
intensely  earnest  and  powerful  utterance  of  a  man 
who  has  long  been  marvellously  laborious  and  success- 
ful in  various  departments  of  spiritual  work.'  '  The 
Lutheran  Observer,'  Philadelphia,  says  :  '  It  will  serve 
as  an  admkable  tonic  to  all  ministers  and  Christians 
generally,  and  especially  to  any  who  may  have  their 
faith  shaken  by  theories  of  modern  critics.' 

"  Have  all  our  readers  read  '  The  Greatest  Fight  in 
the  World '  ?  It  has  had  a  very  large  sale  in  Eng- 
land ;  but  it  might  be  the  means  of  doing  still  more 
good  if  all  friends  would  do  what  they  can  to  increase 
its  circulation.  We  do  not  believe  that  its  mission  is 
fully  accomplished  yet." 

The  messages  and  letters  received  at  the  Confer- 
ences of  the  Pastors'  College  Evangelical  Association 
from  the  mission-fields,  the  British  Colonies,  and  the 
United  States,  and  from  brethren  in  the  United  King- 
dom who  are  unable  to  be  present,  are  all  full  of 
brotherly  love  for  the  honored  President,  and  his 
brother,  the  Vice-President,  and  the  tutors  of  the 
College,  and  they  usually  record  much  earnest  work 


150  Life  of  Pastor   C.  H.  Spnrgeon. 

accomplished  for  the  Lord.  For  many  years  the  Con- 
ference has  been  closed  with  a  sermon  by  the  Presi- 
dent, followed  by  the  Commmiion,  at  the  close  of 
which  all  in  the  assembly  stand,  with  their  hands 
linked  in  token  of  their  fraternal  fellowship,  while 
the  Scotch  version  of  Psalm  cxxii.  is  sung.  It  is  as 
follows  :  — 

"  Pray  that  Jerusalem  may  have 
Peace  and  felicity  : 
Let  them  that  love  thee  and  thy  peace 
Have  still  prosperity. 

"  Therefore  I  wish  that  peace  may  still 
Within  thy  walls  remain, 
And  ever  may  thy  palaces 
Prosperity  retain. 

"  Now,  for  my  friends'  and  brethren's  sakes, 
Peace  be  in  thee,  I  '11  say  ; 
And  for  the  house  of  God  our  Lord, 
I  '11  seek  thy  good  alway." 


CHAPTER    XIII. 

THE   SOCIETY   OF   EVANGELISTS. 

IN  connection  with  the  Pastors'  College  is  c- 
society  bearing  the  above  title,  whose  workers 
we  have  already  referred  to ;  but  as  the  work  is 
manifestly  growing  in  importance  and  usefulness, 
it  needs  a  special  mention  here. 

Many  of  the  most  successful  pastors  in  former 
times  gave  a  portion  of  their  time  to  evangelistic 
work.  We  would  mention  the  names  of  some  whose 
labors  in  this  respect  have  been  greatly  blessed  of 
God,  in  planting  the  seeds  of  divine  truth,  and  in 
promoting  the  spiritual  interest  of  the  Church,  es- 
pecially in  connection  with  Nonconformity.  The 
labors  of  Whitefield  and  Wesley  were  very  much  of 
this  nature,  and  their  helpers  and  followers  trod  in 
their  footsteps.  John  Elias,  Christmas  Evans,  and 
many  others,  including  Charles,  of  Bala,  did  this 
work  very  thoroughly  in  the  Principality,  the  results 
of  which  are  manifest  everywhere  within  its  borders 
to-day.  The  Rev.  Richard  Davis,  of  Rowell,  North- 
amptonshire ;  the  Rev.  John  Giles,  of  Eythorne  ;  the 
Rev.    John   Palmer,   of   Shrewsbury ;    the   Rev.   Mr. 


152  Life  of  Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeon. 

Grimshaw,  in  his  parish  church  at  Haworth,  and 
in  multitudes  of  places  around,  —  did  this  work  very 
earnestly,  and  with  large  results  in  souls  converted, 
churches  founded,  and  religious  institutions  estab- 
lished. In  fact,  every  pastor  should  be  an  evan- 
gelist ;  that  is,  ^'  a  messenger  of  good,"  seeking  to 
carry  the  gospel  to  all  he  can  reach.  Neither  can  he 
make  full  proof  of  his  ministry  if  he  does  not  cry 
to  the  unconverted  and  the  undecided  :  ''  0  ye  dry 
bones,  hear  the  Word  of  the  Lord." 

But  there  has  always  been  a  need,  and  there 
is  need  still,  for  men  specially  qualified  for  the 
Lord's  work  as  evangelists,  devoted  more  or  less 
entirely  to  that  work.  Moreover,  as  in  the  apostolic 
age,  God  has  constantly  prepared  men  for  this  par- 
ticular woi'k.     "  He  gave  some  .  .  .  evangelists." 

Conspicuously  in  the  front  rank  of  the  Pastors' 
College  Evangelists  stand  Mr.  W.  Y.  Fullerton  and 
Mr.  J.  Manton  Smith,  the  former  distinguished  for 
his  very  remarkable  power  as  a  preacher  of  the 
gospel,  and  the  latter  noted  for  the  charm  of  his 
gospel  songs,  and  the  manner  in  which  he  leads  the 
singing  of  a  great  assembly  with  the  silver  cornet 
presented  to  him  by  Mr.  Spurgeon.  Both  these 
brethren  hold  fast  and  hold  forth  the  great  truths 
of  the  everlasting  gospel;  and  the  same  is  true  of 
Mr.  Burnham,  Mr.  Harmer,  and  Mr.  Harrison.  The 
income  of  the  Society  of  Evangelists  in  1890-91 
reached   Xl,233   16s.  8d. 


W.    Y.    FULLERTON. 


J.    MANTON    SMITH. 


154  Life  and  Labors  of 

In  his  last  Report  of  the  work  of  himself  and 
Mr.   Smith,   Mr.  Fullerton  writes  :  — 

"  Dm'ing  the  year  from  March,  1890,  to  February, 
1891,  twenty-three  places  have  been  visited.  The 
list  of  names  can  be  read  elsewhere  in  the  Report. 
Suffice  it  to  say  that  our  sphere  of  service  has 
varied  from  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle,  with  its 
vast  capacity,  to  a  quiet  mission-hall,  holding  scarcely 
three  hundred  people ;  and  from  the  throng  of  Lon- 
don to  a  sedate  Suffolk  town,  or  Yorkshire  hamlet ;  and 
from  a  busv  manufacturino-  centre  in  the  North  to  an 
old-world  Cornish  port,  or  aristocratic  watering-place. 

"  But  the  gospel  we  have  preached  has  varied  not  at 
all,  and  we  have  found,  as  of  yore,  that  the  old  truth 
is  suited  to  all  men,  whether  they  be  subtle  or  simple. 
Indeed,  I  am  more  and  more  convinced  that  my 
countryman,  who  declared  that  '  one  man 's  as  good 
as  another,  and  far  better' — the  last  clause  referring, 
of  course,  to  his  own  country,  Ireland  —  was  not  far 
wrong.  In  town  or  village,  east  or  west,  the  cross 
is  the  key  to  unlock  the  human  heart. 

"  Our  field  has  been  as  wide  in  the  denominations 
it  has  embraced  as  the  localities  it  has  included. 
Baptists,  Congregationalists,  Presbyterians,  Wesley- 
ans,  Primitive  Methodists,  Bible  Christians,  and  the 
Society  of  Friends,  have  in  turn  been  visited,  be- 
sides many  public  halls  ;  among  them  may  be 
mentioned  the  immense  St.  George's  Hall,  in  Brad- 
ford, which,  during  our  mission  there  in  September 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  155 

last,  was  frequently  used  and  filled.  We  have  not 
preached  in  any  Episcopalian  Church,  or  Salvation 
Army  Barracks,  or  Brethren's  Room,  though  many 
from  all  these  sections  have  attended  the  meetings. 
Our  work  is  thus  truly  catholic ;  not  undenominational, 
but  inter-denominational ;  and  in  this  connection  we 
cannot  speak  too  highly  of  the  effective  aid  rendered 
by  the  various  Y.  M.  C.  A's.  and  Y.  W.  C.  A's.,  and 
kindred  institutions,  with  which  we  have  been  brought 
in  contact. 

"  What  are  the  benefits  of  such  an  effort  ?  If  asso- 
ciated with  the  regular  church  work,  it  should  be 
like  the  horse  which  is,  at  the  steep  hill,  attached  to 
the  tram-car  to  give  it  a  pull  over  a  hard  place. 
To  constant  workers  it  should  be,  like  a  brief  visit 
to  the  sea,  invigorating  for  the  year's  usual  service. 
To  the  undecided  in  the  various  congregations,  it 
should  be  like  a  few  days  of  intense  summer  heat 
ripening  the  corn' which  was  sown  long  ago  by  faith- 
ful hands. 

"  Are  such  results  realized  ?  Speaking  from  our 
own  experience.  Yes.  And  having  visited  five  places 
this  year  for  the  second  time,  we  would  emphasize 
that  answer.  Yes.  Even  after  ten  years'  interval, 
many  have  come  forward  in  the  place  where  the 
meetings  were  held,  and  spoken  of  the  blessing  per- 
sonally received  at  them  ;  some  who  were  then  brought 
to  Christ,  we  now  find  earnest  workers,  deacons  of 
churches,  and  even  ministers  of  the  Word. 


156  Life  and  Labors  of 

"In  addition  to  this,  we  never  get  into  any 
place  without  testimony,  often  multiplied  testimony, 
being  given  of  definite  decision  for  Christ  in  some 
other  district.  This,  of  course,  is  a  result  which 
will  not  show  in  the  church-books  of  that  other 
place. 

"And  how  many  Christians,  whose  outward  life 
is  irreproachable,  nevertheless,  in  heart,  have  gone 
away  from  God  !  We  count  it  one  of  our  greatest 
privileges  to  be  permitted,  as  we  often  are  to 
lead  such  into  the  light  again.  It  is  so  easy  for 
them  to  open  their  minds  to  strangers  who  are 
only  exercising  a  fugitive  ministry,  and  it  would  be 
so  difficult  to  ask  counsel  of  those  near  whom  they 
always  live. 

"  In  most  cases,  as  an  outcome  of  the  mission,  reg- 
ular classes  or  prayer-meetings  are  arranged.  At 
New  Court  Chapel,  in  the  North  of  London,  a  large 
Sunday  Afternoon  Men's  Meeting  has  been  established, 
and  carried  on  with  much  enthusiasm  ever  since ;  at 
Fulham,  a  Nonconformist  Union,  embracing  nearly 
a  score  of  churches,  has  been  organized  to  carry  on 
social,  temperance,  and  evangelistic  work  ;  and  many 
other  unofficial  efforts  take  their  rise  in  the  quickened 
life  of  the  special  services. 

"  But  the  chief  result  is,  and  must  always  be,  that 
then  and  there  men  and  women  and  children  are  led 
into  the  kingdom  of  God.  In  most  places,  hundreds 
have  declared  that  they  have  passed  from  death  to 


Pastor  0.  H.  Spiirgeon.  157 

life ;  and  while,  doubtless,  some  of  these  were  already 
regenerate,  and  only  lacked  assurance,  and  many  were 
under  impression  ere  the  mission  began,  a  considerable 
number  of  others  have  been  drawn  to  the  services, 
perhaps  by  curiosity,  or  by  the  extra  effort  put  forth 
by  some  earnest  friend,  or  to  listen  to  Mr.  Smith's 
singing  or  cornet,  or  even,  as  during  the  past  awful 
winter,  to  get  shelter,  —  who  have  been  met  with  by 
the  Spirit  of  God,  and  led  to  the  feet  of  Jesus.  Some 
great  sinners,  both  men  and  women,  have  thus  been 
reached. 

"  The  chief  argument  for  such  services,  however 
lies  in  the  very  fact  that  those  led  to  distinct  avowal 
of  faith  in  Jesus,  are  in  great  measure  those  that 
had  been  previously  impressed.  Under  the  regular 
ministry  of  the  Word  there  appears  to  them  little 
urgent  reason  why  they  should  decide  for  Christ  on 
one  Sunday  more  than  on  another ;  and  there  is  but 
a  slight  excuse  for  timid  Christians  approaching  them 
to  urge  them  to  do  so.  But  when  the  Special  Mission 
is  arranged,  all  that  is  changed.  There  is  now  every 
reason  for  instant  decision,  and  eveiy  excuse  for  im- 
portunate pleading  with  the  unsaved.  Some  brethren 
object  to  these  efforts,  I  know ;  but  why  they  should 
approve  of  the  gospel  being  preached  three  times  a 
week,  and  object  to  its  being  preached  ten  times  a 
week,  I  could  never  understand;  or  what  possible 
harm  can  accrue  from  the  diffused  energies  of  the 
church  being  concentrated,  for  a  week  or  two,  in  one 


158  Life  and  Labors  of 

burning  effort  to  reach  the  outside  world,  I  cannot 
imao^ine. 

"  Two  days  ago,  at  Ilfracomhe,  where  these  lines 
are  written,  a  fire  was  discovered  in  a  house,  and,  for- 
tunately, extinguished  with  but  little  damage.  No 
cause  could  be  discovered  for  it,  until,  as  they  waited 
and  speculated,  the  fire  broke  out  afresh,  when  they 
found,  to  their  intense  astonishment,  that  it  was 
ignited  by  means  of  a  water-bottle,  which  focussed  the 
rays  of  the  sun  on  one  spot  on  the  table,  until  it  began 
to  burn.  The  water-bottle  was  a  most  unlikely  in- 
strument, but,  like  the  Special  Service,  it  concentrated 
the  else  diffused  light  into  one  burning  point,  and  the 
result  was  —  a  fire.  To  produce  a  fire  of  grace,  it 
needs  Christians  as  clear  as  glass  in  motive  and  aim, 
filled  to  the  full  with  the  living  water  of  the  Spirit  of 
God,  and  dwelling  in  the  unclouded  light  of  the  Sun 
of  Righteousness.  Then  we  shall  set  fire  to  the  devil's 
standing  corn,  or  to  the  house,  wherein  he  has,  like  a 
strong  man  armed,  kept  his  goods  in  the  peace  of 
carnal  security.  May  the  Lord  send  us  more  of  these 
conflao-rations ! " 


"a' 


Another  outgrowth  of  the  Pastors'  College  is  the 


PASTORS'  COLLEGE   MISSIONARY  ASSOCIATION. 

By  its  means  two  of  the  missionaries  of  the  North 
African  Mission  are  supported,  and  others  will  be 
added  to  them  as  means  and  opportunities  permit. 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon. 


159 


The  following  letters  from  Dr.  Churcher  and  Mr. 
Patrick  will  give  some  idea  of  their  work  up  to 
March,  1891 :  — 


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^'  I  have  delayed  several  days  in  sending  this  note 
in  the  vain  hope  of  thinking  of  something  special  for 
the  College  Report.     Five  years  in  Morocco  have  only 


160  Life  and  Labors  of 

served  to  drive  home  more  forcibly  than  ever  upon 
my  heart  that  the  one  thing  special  about  this  land 
is  its  need,  its  awful  need  of  the  gospel.  Creeds  and 
systems,  faith  and  fanaticism  they  have  in  abundance, 
but  they  do  need  salvation. 

"  Our  little  hospital,  of  which  I  enclose  a  photo,  has 
now  some  five-and-twenty  patients  constantly  with 
us,  receiving  not  only  bodily  blessing,  but  daily 
gospel  teaching.  Then  there  are  the  out-patients, 
and  we  have  also  a  dispensary  for  Jews  and  Span- 
iards, by  whom  together  some  6,000  visits  were  paid 
to  us  last  year. 

"  Patients  come  from  the  most  distant  parts  of  the 
land,  and  some  at  least  we  believe  carry  back  with 
them  the  gospel  into  the  outer  darkness  of  the  regions 
beyond.  For  there  are  hundreds  of  thousands,  yes, 
millions  in  this  land  alone,  who  have  never  heard  of 
Jesus  as  the  only  Saviour,  nor  even  seen  a  real 
Christian. 

"  Last  week  one  of  the  few  natives  who  we  believe 
have  received  Jesus  into  their  hearts  died  rather 
suddenly.  He  was  very  ignorant,  but  he  had  boldly 
acknowledged  his  faith  in  the  Saviour  before  many 
others,  and  though  none  of  us  were  with  him  when 
he  died,  it  was  comforting  to  hear  from  his  wife  that 
at  the  last  he  urged  her  not  to  forget  to  trust  in 
Jesus. 

"  We  are  told  that  the  Lord's  people  shall  come  out 
of  every  tribe.     May  some  of  our  good  brethren  of 


Pasto?'  C.  H.  Spur g eon.  161 

the  College   be  led   to  come   out   to   gather   in   the 
Lord's  chosen  ones  from  Morocco  ! 

"  T.    GiLLARD    ChURCHER." 

"  It  is  distasteful  to  write  about  one's  own  work 
but  I  suppose  it  is  a  necessity. 

"  At  the  present  time,  in  the  Cafe  Oriental,  and  a 
Mission  Cottage,  we  are  holding  six  Evangelistic 
meetings  each  week  for  the  Spaniards,  and  they  are 
all  more  largely  attended  than  when  I  wrote  you 
last  year.  Our  Monday  night  prayer-meeting  is 
especially  encouraging  and  helpful. 

"  On  Tuesday  and  Saturday  afternoons.  Dr. 
Churcher  conducts  a  Dispensary  in  the  Cafe,  which 
is  connected  with  the  Mildmay  Mission  to  the  Jews; 
very  many  Jews  and  Spaniards  come  for  medicine. 
A  service  is  held  with  the  patients  before  the  doctor- 
ing commences. 

"  Each  Thursday  and  Saturday  evening,  a  class  is 
held  to  teach  reading  and  writing  in  Spanish.  The 
number  is  limited  to  ten,  for  lack  of  competent 
teachers. 

"  Every  Friday  evening  my  wife  conducts  a 
Mothers'  Meeting  in  the  Cottage.  She  had  just  re- 
turned from  the  meeting,  and  tells  me  that  eighteen 
mothers  and  twelve  children  were  present. 

''  Each  afternoon,  Saturdays  and  Sundays  excepted, 
a  day-school  is  held,  and  the  children  are  taught  read- 
ing, writing,  and  arithmetic  by  a  Spaniard,  whom  I 

11 


162  Life  arid  Labors  of 

employ,  named  Pablo.  I  hope  he  is  a  converted  man. 
About  sixteen  little  ones  attend  regularly.  My  wife 
and  myself  try  to  teach  them  our  gospel  hymns  and 
the  way  of  salvation. 

"  About  six  weeks  since,  we  transferred  our  Sunday 
morning  English  service  from  Hope  House  to  the 
Cafe  Oriental,  hoping  thereby  to  be  successful  in 
obtaining  larger  congregations.  We  are  encouraged 
in  this  effort.  The  average  attendance  has  been 
about  twenty-eight. 

"  We  dare  not  say  anything  about  the  number  of 
our  converts,  but  our  work  is  only  a  small  one.  If, 
however,  in  one  of  our  meetings,  I  were  to  ask  all 
who  believed  in  Jesus  Christ  to  stand,  every  one 
would  immediately  rise.  Every  one  says  he  believes, 
and  is  saved,  and  mostly  adds,  '  I  have  been  a  Chris- 
tian since  I  was  a  baby.'  We  have  a  small  band  of 
men  and  women  that  are  evidently  growing  in  grace. 
Some,  that  for  a  time  seemed  to  follow  Christ,  have 
turned  back,  to  their  shame  and  to  our  sorrow.  Some 
have  returned  to  Spain ;  and  while  this  in  one  way  is 
trying,  we  always  hope  that,  having  heard  the  gospel 
of  the  grace  of  God,  they  may  carry  the  good  news  to 

their  own  country. 

"  N.  Hardingham  Patrick." 

PIONEER  MISSION  WORK. 

Still  another  outcome  of  the  Pastors'  College  is 
the  Pioneer  Work  of  Mr.  E.  A.  Carter  and  his  help- 


Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeon.  163 

ers.  This  is  distinctly  Home  Mission  work,  and  the 
following  paragraph,  from  the  Annual  Report  for 
1890-91,  will  explain  the  character  and  objects  of 
the  enterprise :  — 

"  The  object  of  our  Pioneer  work  is  to  spread  the 
glorious  gospel  in  its  fulness,  and  to  establish  centres 
of  work  for  our  denomination  where  they  do  not  ex- 
ist. It  may  not  be  known  to  all  our  readers  that 
there  are  many  places  in  England,  w^ith  large  popu- 
lations, where  at  present  there  is  no  Baptist  church. 
Many  of  our  families  remove  to  these  neighborhoods, 
and  full  often  they  and  their  children  are  lost  to  us. 
This  ought  not  to  be,  when  we  consider  the  impor- 
tance of  those  New  Testament  principles  for  which  we 
contend. 

'''  Our  work  is  largely  of  an  Evangelistic  and  Pioneer 
character  ;  for  its  object  is  to  break  up  the  ground 
which  a  pastor  may  eventually  till.  That  there  is 
great  need  for  this  effort,  we  are  learning  more  and 
more  ;  and  we  need  but  God's  blessing,  the  right  men, 
and  plenty  of  funds,  that  we  may  go  ahead." 

Work  has  been  commenced  at  the  following 
places :  Farnworth,  near  Bolton ;  New  Brighton ; 
Waterloo,  Liverpool ;  Birkdale ;  Matlock  Bridge  and 
Bath ;  Douglas,  Isle  of  Man ;  Withington,  Man- 
chester ;  and  Christchurch,  Hants.  Mr.  Spurgeon 
is  the  treasurer. 


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CHAPTER  XIY. 


THE  STOCKWELL  ORPHANAGE. 


IN  "  The  Sword  and  the  Trowel "  for  October, 
1866,  Mr.  Spurgeon  made  an  important  an- 
nouncement. It  was  to  the  effect  that  a  venerable 
lady,  the  widow  of  a  clergyman  of  the  Church  of 
England,  and  who  was  then  in  fellowship  with  "  the 
brethren,"  was  desirous  of  devoting  £20.000  of  her 
property  for  the  founding  and  support  of  an  Orphan- 
age for  boys.  This  was  no  scheme  of  his  own, 
but  a  work  distinctly  entrusted  to  him  by  a  kind 
Providence,  and  committed  to  his  hand  by  the 
lady  who  acted  as  the  Lord's  almoner.  The  wish 
and  prayer  of  Mrs.  Hillyard  was  that,  through  the 
Orphanage,  boys  might  by  divine  grace  be  converted, 
and  become  ministers  and  missionaries.  This  ex- 
cellent lady  was  personally  unknown  to  Mr.  Spur- 
geon,  but  had  been  a  reader  of  his  sermons,  and 
had  perfect  confidence  in  his  wisdom  and  upright- 
ness. The  deacons  of  the  Tabernacle  at  once  con- 
sented to  become  co-trustees  with  their  pastor,  and 
a  trust-deed  and  scheme  were  at  once  prepared,  to 
give  effect  to  the  donor's  wishes. 


166  Life  and  Labors  of 

In  January,  1867,  two  and  a  half  acres  of  ground 
in  Stockwell,  abutting  on  the  Clapham  Road,  were 
purchased,  and  building  would  have  been  proceeded 
with  at  once,  but  that  a  monetary  panic  having  oc- 
curred, the  trustees  were  unable  to  realize  the  securi- 
ties, consisting  chiefly  of  railway  debentures,  which 
had  been  handed  over  to  them.  They  could  not  even 
pay  for  the  ground  without  raising  a  loan,  which  they 
were  very  unwilling  to  do,  as  it  might  prove  a  bad 
omen.  "  The  esteemed  sister,"  says  Mr.  Spurgeon, 
"  who  had  so  freely  given  of  her  substance,  had  in- 
vested it  very  prudently,  and  it  was  impossible  to  fore- 
see the  peculiar  state  of  the  money  market  which 
locked  up  all  our  funds;  but  it  was  wisely  ordered,  for 
the  circumstance  has  been  fraught  with  great  results 
to  the  Orphanage,  since  it  has  compelled  us  to  retain 
a  larger  endowment  fund  than  we  might  otherwise 
have  possessed,  if,  indeed,  we  had  thought  of  having 
any  at  all."     We  still  quote  from  Mr.  Spurgeon :  — 

"  The  scheme  of  the  Orphanage  proposed  to  do 
away  tvith  all  voting  and  canvassing^  with  the  waste- 
ful expenditure  necessitated  thereby,  and  also  to  form 
the  orphans  into  large  families^  instead  of  massing 
them  together  on  the  workhouse  system.  This  last 
idea  was  convenient  for  the  raising  of  money,  for  it 
enabled  us  to  propose  that  individual  donors  should 
each  give  the  amount  to  build  a  house,  and  at  the 
same  time  we  appealed  to  the  Christian  public  for 
the  means   to  pay  for  the   land   and   the   buildings 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon,  167 

which  would  be  needed  for  the  common  use  of  the 
orphans,  such  as  dinmg-hall,  school-rooms,  &c.  We 
carried  this  matter  before  God  in  prayer,  and  looked 
up ;  and  we  beg  the  reader  to  follow  the  entries,  and 
mark  the  goodness  of  God." 

"June,  1867.  The  Lord  is  beginning  to  appear 
for  us  in  the  matter  of  the  Orphanage  ;  but  as  yet 
he  has  not  opened  the  windows  of  heaven  as  we 
desire  and  expect.  We  wait  in  faith  and  prayer. 
We  need  no  less  than  c£  10,000  to  erect  the  build- 
ings, and  it  ivill  eome.^^ 

Mr.  George  Moore  sent  X250.  Three  friends 
offered  .£50  each,  in  hope  that  seventeen  others 
would  do  the  same.  It  pleased  God,  however,  to  try 
His  servant's  faith.  With  no  object  in  view  but  the 
glory  of  God  by  the  instruction  of  fatherless  ])oys  (the 
Orphanage  was  confined  to  boys  at  first)  in  the  ways 
of  the  Lord,  having  a  special  view  to  their  souls' 
salvation,  he  hoped  that  many  of  the  Lord's  people 
would  at  once  have  seen  the  usefulness  and  practical 
character  of  the  enterprise,  and  have  sent  substantial 
aid  immediately. 

"  The  Lord's  way,  however,  is  the  best,"  says 
Mr.  Spurgeon,  "  and  we  rejoice  in  it,  let  it  be  what 
it  may ;  if  the  work  is  to  be  one  of  time  and  long 
effort,  so  let  it  be,  if  thereby  God's  name  is  mag- 
nified." 

Mr.  Spurgeon  adds :  "  We  have  engaged  a  sister 
to  receive  the  first  four  orphans  into  her  own  hired 


168  Life  and  Labors  of 

house  until  the  orphan  houses  are  ready.  Our  be- 
loved friend,  tlie  original  donor,  has  given  her  plate 
to  be  sold  for  this  object,  and  in  doing  so  has  set 
an  example  to  all  believers  who  have  surplus  silver 
which  ought  to  be  put  to  better  use  than  lying- 
wrapped  up  in  a  box." 

In  August,  1867,  Mr.  Spurgeon  writes  :  "  Let  the 
facts  which  with  deep  gratitude  we  record  this 
month  strengthen  the  faith  of  believers.  In  answer 
to  many  fervent  prayers,  the  Lord  has  moved  His 
people  to  send  us,  during  the  last  mouth,  in  different 
amounts,  towards  the  general  funds  of  the  Orphan- 
age, the  sum  of  <£  1,075,  for  which  we  give  thanks 
unto  His  name.  More  especially  do  we  see  the 
gracious  hand  of  God  in  the  following  incidents:  — 

"  A  lady,  who  has  often  aided  us  in  the  work  of  the 
College,  having  been  spared  to  see  the  twenty-fifth 
anniversary  of  her  marriage -day,  her  beloved  hus- 
band presented  her  with  £500  as  a  token  of  his  ever- 
growing love  to  her.  Our  sister  has  called  upon  us, 
and  dedicated  the  £500  to  the  building  of  one  of 
the  houses,  to  be  called  The  Silver  Wedding  House. 
The  Lord  had,  however,  another  substantial  gift  in 
store,  to  encourage  us  in  our  work  ;  for,  a  day  or 
two  ago,  a  brother  beloved  in  the  Lord  called  upon 
us  on  certain  business,  and  when  he  had  retired  he 
left  in  a  sealed  envelope  the  sum  of  £600,  which  is 
to  be  expended  in  erecting  another  house.  This 
donation  was  as  little  expected  as  the  first,  except 


Pastor  C.  H.  Si^urgeon.  169 

that  our  faith  expects  that  all  our  needs  will  be 
supplied  in  the  Lord's  own  way.  Tlie  next  day,  when 
preaching  in  the  open  air,  an  unknown  sister  put  an 
envelope  into  my  hand,  enclosing  X20  for  the  College 
and  £20  for  the  Orphanage." 

Later  on,  Mr.  William  Higgs,  of  the  Crown  Works, 
South  Lambeth,  and  his  workmen,  promised  to  build 
a  house ;  and  Mr.  Thomas  Olney  and  his  sons  agreed 
to  erect  another  in  memory  of  Mrs.  Unity  Olney,  de- 
ceased. The  first  stones  of  four  houses  were  laid 
by  Mr.  Spurgeon,  Mrs.  Hillyard,  Mr.  W.  Higgs,  and 
Mr.  Thomas  Olney.  At  the  close  of  the  day  £2,200 
had  been  brought  in,  so  that  the  land  had  been  pur- 
chased and  four  houses  provided  for  without  touching 
Mrs.  Hillyard's  gift. 

In  January,  1868,  Mr.  Spurgeon  reported  that  the 
noble  sum  of  £1,000  had  been  brought  by  an  un- 
known gentleman  towards  the  erection  of  two  other 
houses.  In  March  he  reports  £2,000  from  "  A.  B.," 
an  unknown  friend,  and  remarks,  "  We  call  upon  all 
our  friends  to  magnify  the  Lord  for  this  amazing 
instance  of  His  care.  How  base  a  thing  is  unbelief, 
and  how  largely  does  the  Lord  honor  His  servants' 
faith !  The  note  which  attended  this  munificent  gift 
proves  it  to  be  from  the  same  donor  who  gave  £1,000 
a  few  weeks  ago.  We  have  feared  that  tlie  Orphan- 
age might  impoverish  the  College  ;  see,  dear  readers, 
how  graciously  the  Lord  rebukes  this  unbelieving 
fear  I  "     Here  is  the  letter :  — 


170  Life  and  Labor's  of 

My  Dear  Sir,  —  You  will  remember  my  intention  to  send  a 
donation  to  3'our  College.  I  have  this  day  dropped  into  your 
letter-box  an  envelope  containing  two  bank  notes  (^2,000),  one  of 
which  is  for  the  College,  and  the  remaining  £1,000  to  help  com- 
plete the  Orphanage.  Tlie  latter  led  me  to  contribute  to  the 
former.  I  am  a  stranger  to  you,  but  not  to  your  sermons 
(printed).  May  the  Lord  give  you  health  and  strength  many 
years   to  preach  His  Word  and  carry  on  His  work  ! 

A.  B. 

In  June  of  the  same  year,  the  Baptist  churches  of 
England  presented  £1,200,  afterwards  made  up  to 
<£1,T65,  to  Mr.  Spurgeon,  for  the  Orphanage,  as  a 
testimonial,  accompanied  by  a  beautifully  illuminated 
memorial. 

The  superintendent  of  the  Tabernacle  Sunday- 
school  engaged,  on  behalf  of  the  teachers  and 
scholars,  to  raise  the  money  to  pay  for  a  Sunday- 
school  House.  The  zeal  of  the  former  and  then  pres- 
ent students  accomplished  the  feat  of  raising  funds 
for  a  Pastors'  College  House.  The  request  of  those 
who  raised  funds  for  this,  —  that  Mrs.  Spurgeon 
should  lay  the  first  stone,  —  the  long-afflicted  lady 
was  enabled  to  comply  with,  to  the  great  joy  of  all, 
and  not  least  her  beloved  husband.  After  the  stone- 
laying  was  over,  twenty-six  sweet  little  girls  in 
white  advanced  one  by  one,  and  presented  Mrs. 
Spurgeon  with  purses  containing  donations,  which 
their  parents  had  subscribed  as  a  token  of  their 
affectionate  rejoicing  at  her  presence  in  their  midst. 

Thus,  by  the  end  of  1869  all  the  buildings  were 


Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeon,  171 

finished,  at  a  cost  of  £10,200,  and  were  entirely  free 
fro)ii  debt.  Since  this  an  infirmary,  bath,  and  laun- 
dry have  been  added,  and  two  of  the  houses  raised 
another  story  ;  yet  all  this  outlay  was  speedily  cov- 
ered by  the  bounteous  hand  of  the  All-provider. 

Rev.  Hugh  Stowell  Brown,  of  Liverpool,  and  Rev. 
J.  P.  Chown,  then  of  Bradford,  with  their  liberal- 
hearted  people,  raised  large  sums  for  the  Orphanage. 
Mr.  Brown's  people  sent  c£450  for  this  object. 

In  March,  1875,  the  funds  of  the  Orphanage  were 
very  low.  "  When  the  tide  has  quite  ebbed  out,  the 
flood  will  return,"  says  Mr.  Spurgeon.  "  Our  boys 
persist  in  eating,  and  wearing  out  their  clothes,  or 
we  would  not  mention  the  matter  of  failing  funds ; 
but  appetites  are  stubborn  things,  and  our  boys  have 
double-barrelled  ones."  In  the  following  September 
Mr.  Spurgeon  wrote  :  — 

"  We  have  this  month  received  the  largest  amount, 
save  one,  ever  entrusted  to  us  at  one  time,  namely, 
X  10,000 ;  half  of  it  is  for  the  Orphanage,  and  will 
be  invested  according  to  our  general  rule  with  lega- 
cies, unless  our  daily  needs  should  compel  us  to 
draw  upon  it." 

Two  months  later  he  wrote :  '■  This  month  we 
have  had  many  generous  helps,  but  one  of  them  has 
charmed  us  beyond  measure.  The  good  friends  at 
Reading  have  held  a  bazaar  for  our  Orphanage,  and 
the  net  result  is  j6  1,158 !  We  never  dreamed  of 
such  a  thing,  and  can  hardly  realize  it  now.     This  is 


172 


Life  and  Labors  of 


royal  munificence,  surpassing  anything  done  for  us 
by  any  town  in  England.  We  bless  the  name  of  the 
Lord,  and  take  courage." 

The  Orphanages,  as  they  now  stand,  are  archi- 
tecturally attractive ;  and  though  no  money  has 
been  thrown  away  on  mere  ornamentation,  the 
buildings,  taken  severally  or  collectively,  are  quite 
worthy  to  be  compared  with  similar  erections  both  at 
home  and  abroad.  Elegance  and  utility  are  happily 
blended. 


j;/  -^r. --£  ^      .:.  .5  i5/i/        Q) 
ENTRAXCE    TO    STOCKWELL    OKPHANAGE. 

Entering  bv  the  arch  at  the  end  of  the  lono-  carriaq;e 
drive,  you  see  a  large  open  square,  gracefully  laid 
out  and  planted,  the  various  buildings  filling  all 
sides  of  the  square.     On  the  pillar  to  the  right  of 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  173 

the  entrance  arch  are  to  be  seen  the  Sword  and  the 
Troivel^  the  emblems  of  conflict  with  sin,  and  labor 
for  the  Lord,  which  gave  the  title  to  Mr.  Spurgeon's 
Magazine,  twenty-seven  years  ago;  and  on  the  left, 
the  precious  promise,  "  The  Lord  tvill  provide  ;^^  while 
on  the  inner  sides  of  the  first  two  piers  is  the  text, 
"  Ml/  God  shall  supply  all  your  need  according  to  His 
riches  in  glory  by  Christ  JesusP  When  standing 
under  the  marble  archway  we  read  the  soul- 
strengthening  text,  so  full  of  promise  of  help:  "J. 
Father  of  the  fatherless^  and  a  Judge  of  the  ividows  is 
God  in  His  holy  habitation ; "  and  on  the  piers  facing 
the  Orphanage  grounds  are  the  following  inscriptions  : 
'''Solomon  in  all  his  glory  tvas  not  arrayed  like  07ie 
of  thescy^  and,  "  Your  Heavenly  Father  feedeth 
themr 

-■"» 


Up  to  1879,  the  Orphanage  was  confined  to  boys. 
But  Mr.  Spurgeon  did  not  forget  the  girls,  nor  did 


174 


Life  and  Labors  of 


Mr.  Spurgeoii's  God ;  and  those  who  imitate  Him  in 
giving  to  the  poor  also  remembered  them.  In  ''  The 
Sword  and  the  Trowel "  for  Jmie  in  the  above-named 
year,  appeared  the  following  announcement :  — 

"  We  have  received  from  the  fomidress  of  the 
Stockwell  Orphanage,  ^£50  towards  a  Girls'  Orphan- 
age, to  which  we  have  added"  another  X50,  and  Mr. 
Galpin  .£50,  besides  two  promises  of  .£25  each.  At 
the  fete  on  June  19th,  there  will  be  a  sale  of  goods  on 
behalf  of  the  GirW  Orphanage.  There  will  be  no 
pressing  of  this  matter,  for  we   have   a  firm  belief 


THE  boys'  side  OF  THE  ORPHANAaE, 

that  it  will  grow  of  itself,  till  we  shall  have  sufficient 
funds  to  be  able  to  move  in  it." 

A  month  later  Mr.  Spurgeon  reports  the  annual 
fete,  and  adds :  "  The  announcement  that  we  are 
enabled  to  go  on  with  the  Girls'  Orphanage,  under 
our  present  trust-deed,  was  received  with  great 
applause,  which  was   repeated  when  we   announced 


Pasto?'   0.  H.  Spurgeon,  175 

that  we  had  already  made  a  beginning  by  purchasing 
for  £4,000  the  adjacent  house  and  grounds,  called 
*  The  Hawthorns.'  Towards  this  amount  we  had  re- 
ceived up  to  the  20th  of  June,  in  addition  to  the 
profits  of  Bazaar,  £309  16s.  2d.,  together  with  £200 
towards  a  house  to  be  called  '  The  Deacons'  House.' 
We  have  also  promises  of  £25  from  one  friend ; 
£50  from  another ;  £500  for  one  of  the  houses 
for  girls,  from  a  friend;  £500  from  a  firm  for  an- 
other house;  and  £25  worth  of  painting  and  glaz- 
ing, when  it  is  needed.  AVe  shall  be  glad  if  the 
Lord  inclines  His  stewards  to  send  the  rest  of 
the  £4,000  before  the  purchase-money  has  to  be 
paid,  which  must  be  done  on  July  15th ;  but  in  any 
case  we  leave  the  matter  in  His  hands,  knowing  that 
all  will  be  well.  Without  more  than  £550  specially 
given  or  promised  for  this  object,  it  is  rather  daring 
to  hope  for  the  rest  in  a  fortnight,  but  our  Provider 
is  a  God  of  great  resources." 

A  month  later  Mr.  Spurgeon  notes  that  "up  to 
the  moment  of  writing  we  have  received  towards 
the  purchase-money  of  ^  The  Hawthorns,'  £2,206  8s. 
6d.  In  addition  to  this,  we  have  promises  of  £50 
and  £25  for  the  same  purpose ;  and  a  notice  has  been 
sent  to  us  that  a  poor  widow,  who  recently  died,  had 
bequeathed  nineteen  guineas  to  the  Girls'  Orphanage, 
and  a  similar  amount  to  the  Boys.'  This  will  make  a 
total  of  £2,301  7s.  6d.  towards  the  £4,000  required 
for    the    house    and    grounds.     We    have    also   the 


176 


Life  and  Labors  of 


promise  of  six  Jiouses  when  we  are  ready  to  build  ; 
a  freight  of  bricks  from  Sittingbourne,  and  some 
gas-fittings  from  Clieltenham.  After  we  have  paid 
for  the  ground  we  hope  to  take  some  girls  into  the 
house,  and  this  will  involve  the  furnishing  of  it,  for 
which  we  have  no  means  as  yet." 

Wondrously  does  God  work  with  and  on  behalf 
of  His  servants,  whom  he  has  called  to  work  for 
Him.     In  September,  Mr.  Spurgeon  writes  :  — 


THE    GIRLS     SIDE   OF    THE    ORPIIAXAGE. 

"  Once  more  we  have  to  admire  the  loving-kind- 
ness of  our  faithful  and  blessed  God  for  having 
marvellously  supplied  the  wants  of  the  work  to 
which  He  has  called  us.  Our  friends  know  that  we 
bought  a  house  and  grounds  called  '  The  Hawthorns,' 
for  c£ 4,000.  This  sve  needed  to  pay  for.  For  various 
reasons  the  payment  of  the  purchase-money  for  '  The 
Hawthorns '   was   delayed   until   July   30th,   and   07i 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon,  177 

that  very  morning  we  received  a  letter  telling  us  that 
a  gentleman  had  died,  and  left  .£1,500  for  the  Girls' 
Orphanage,  thus  bringing  up  our  total  to  within  a 
very  small  sum  of  the  amount  required.  The  whole 
£4,000  is  now  all  secured,  including  this  legacy,  and 
the  property  is  our  own.  .  .  .  Heartily  do  we  en- 
dorse the  expression  of  the  friend  who  sent  us  the 
good  news,  '  The  Lord  has  wonderful  ways  of  using 
people  to  get  together  means  for  His  work.'  The 
story  of  that  legacy  and  of  other  gifts  is  a  remark- 
able one,  and  may  some  of  these  days  be  told.  It 
illustrates  the  wisdom  and  faithfulness  of  the  Lord, 
and  tends  greatly  to  strengthen  our  faith." 
Lower  down  in  the  same  note  he  adds  :  — 
"  We  have  now  the  promise  of  seven  houses 
when  we  are  ready  to  commence  the  new  buildings. 
'  What  hath  God  wrought ! '  School-rooms  must  be 
built,  and  an  infirmary,  so  that  there  is  still  an 
opportunity  for  large  donors  to  take  a  portion  of  the 
work,  and  finish  it  outright." 

In  1880,  after  the  annual  fete  in  June,  Mr.  Spur- 
geon  had  to  report  great  progress  in  the  Girls' 
Orphanage  enterprise.  Up  to  the  time  that  all  the 
buildings  were  completed,  he  had  kept  the  building 
fund  separate  from  the  general  fund.  It  must  be 
remembered  that,  while  he  was  pleading  for  and 
expecting  the  money  to  complete  the  building  of 
the  Girls'  Orphanage,  he  was  still  needing  daily 
supplies  for  the  boys'  department.     Might  not  friends, 

12 


178 


Life  and  Labors  of 


in  their  warm  zeal  for  the  cause  of  the  girls,  over- 
look the  older  portion  of  the  institution  ?  If  they 
did,  God  did  not,  and  "  The  Lord  will  provide," 
was  again  and  again  fulfilled,  as  it  ever  has  been. 

"  Up  to  the  14th  June  the  general  contributions  to 
the  Girls'  Orphanage  amounted  to  =£976  4s.  Id.,  in 
addition  to  the  other  sums  previously'  acknowledged, 


THE    ORPHANAGE    INFIRMARY 


nameh' :  H.  E.  S.  £500,  and  the  Deacons  .£310,  mak- 
ing a  total  of  £1,786  4s.  Id.  Our  list  of  promises 
now  stands:  C.  H.  Spurgeon,  £500  ;  Messrs.  Passmore 
and  Alabaster,  £500 ;  H.  E.  S.,  a  second  £500;  Samuel 
Barrow,  Esq.,  £600;  the  Deacons,  £690;  W.  R. 
Rickett,  Esq.,  £1,000 ;  so  that,  up  to  the  time  of 
writing,  we  see  our  way  to  more  than  £5,500  of 
the   £11,000,  which  is  the  lowest  contract   for   the 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  179 

first  block  of  buildings.  When  the  tenders  were 
opened,  we  found  that  our  estimate  of  £8,000  was 
short  of  the  mark,  and  therefore  we  arranged  to 
leave  for  six  months  the  erection  of  the  houses 
at  each  end,  so  that  we  might  engage  to  spend 
only  £8,000.  After  waiting  thus,  however,  funds 
came  in  so  encouragingly  that  it  was  resolved  to 
complete  the  whole  of  the  then  present  plan  at 
once." 

In  October,  when  the  foundation  stones  were  to  be 
laid,  it  pleased  God  to  prostrate  the  beloved  Presi- 
dent with  great  pain  and  excessive  weakness.  And 
yet  how  cheerfully  he  wrote  from  his  sick  bed !  The 
Baptist  Union  held  its  autumnal  session  in  London, 
and  the  foundation  stones  of  two  of  the  houses 
were  then  laid. 

"  Heartily,"  said  Mr.  Spurgeon,  "  do  we  welcome 
the  Baptist  Union  to  spend  its  autumnal  session  in 
London.  May  the  Lord  be  in  the  midst  of  all  its 
assemblies !  The  first  engagement  of  the  Union  is 
to  visit  the  Stockwell  Orphanage.  It  was  most  kind 
of  the  committee  so  to  arrange." 

On  Monday,  4th  October,  at  2.30,  Mr.  George 
Palmer,  M.P.,laid  the  memorial  stone  of  The  Reading 
House.  Reading  had  led  the  way  in  constant  kind- 
ness to  the  Orphanage;  the  pastor  of  King's  Road 
Church,  the  late  Mr.  Anderson,  had  been  foremost 
in  aiding  the  work,  and  the  great  firms  of  the 
town,  the   Palmers   and  the  Suttons,  had  been  ex- 


180 


Life  and  Labors  of 


ceedingly  hearty  in  the  cause  of  the  orphan.  The 
late  Hugh  Stowell  Brown,  of  Liverpool,  laid  the 
memorial  stone  of  The  Liverpool  House. 

Gradually  the  entire  establishment  was  completed, 
and  every  claim  met  as  it  became  due. 


o 
< 

w 

o 

H 

>^ 

o 

p; 


The  above  is  necessarily  an  imperfect  representa- 
tion  of   a   scene   in  the  Boys'   Play-hall,  when   Mr. 


Pastor   C.  H,  S pur g eon.  181 

Spurgeon  visited  the  Orphanage  with  an  artist,  for 
the  purpose  of  taking  sketches,  in  September,  1890. 
A  terrific  storm  coming  on,  Mr.  S.  took  refuge  in  the 
Play-hall.  A  chair  was  procured,  and  the  boys 
swarmed  around  him,  when  he  talked  to  them  of  the 
blessedness  of  simple  trust  in  God,  and  the  perfect 
peace  which  follows.  He  prayed,  and  they  sang 
hymns,  amid  the  booming  thunder  and  the  blazing 
lightning;  and  a  profound  impression  seemed  to  have 
been  made  on  many.  •  Mr.  Spurgeon  wrote  a  descrip- 
tion of  the  incident  under  the  title  of  "  A  Happy 
Scene  in  a  Storm."  It  is  published  as  No.  15  of  the 
"  Stockwell  Orphanage  Tracts." 

For  fuller  details  we  must  refer  the  reader  to  the 
Annual  Reports,  merely  adding  that  the  Orphanage 
opens  its  doors  to  the  full  extent  of  its  capability  to 
the  most  necessitous  orphans,  without  restriction  to 
any  denomination.  By  far  the  largest  number 
are  the  children  of  members  of  the  Church  of 
England ;  Baptists  come  next,  then  other  denomi- 
nations, including  Romanists,  and  also  those  of  no 
denomination.  It  is  a  grand  sight  to  see  the  five 
hundred  boys  and  girls  on  fete  days,  and  the  thou- 
sands of  people  who  assemble  then  to  do  honor 
to  the  President  on  his  birthday,  and  to  sliow  sym- 
pathy with  him  in  this  blessed  and  Christlike  work. 
You  can  seldom  see  anywhere  so  many  happy  faces  ; 
but  among  all,  there  is  no  one  who  is  more  full 
of   joy    and   gladness   than    Mr.    Spurgeon   himself: 


182  Life  and  Labors  of 

and  no  one  could  make  him  more  glad  with  any 
earthly  gift  than  with  a  donation,  whether  large 
or  small,  for  the  Stockwell  Orphanage.  And  now 
that  he  has  been  (while  we  write)  so  many  weeks 
on  the  verge  of  the  grave,  the  present  writer  may 
be  pardoned  for  saying  that  it  has  been  Mr.  Spur- 
geon's  wish  to  see,  before  he  ends  his  life  and 
his  labors,  the  Endowment  Fund  of  the  Orphanage 
made  sufficiently  ample  for  all  future  requirements. 

Here  may  be  the  most  fitting  place  to  introduce 
some  remarks  and  observations  of  the  late  great 
American  Temperance  lecturer,  John  B.  Gough. 

In  "  Sunlight  and  Shadow ;  or,  Gleanings  from 
my  Life  Work,"  ^  Mr.  Gough  relates  some  interesting 
incidents  concerning  Mr.  Spurgeon.  Having  related 
several  anecdotes,  and  refuted  many  of  the  foolish 
stories  current  concerning  him,  he  says  :  — 

"  I  think  these  anecdotes  show  that  he  is  one  of 
the  most  natural  of  men,  with  no  false  pride  or 
starch  about  him.  He  says  just  what  he  thinks,  in 
the  most  natural  and  homely  manner.  He  is  a 
troublesome  customer  to  pompous  people,  who  fancy 
themselves  somebodies  when  they  are  nothing  of 
the  kind. 

"  The  strangest  stories  have  been  in  circulation 
with  regard  to  his  drinking.     1  am  glad  to  be  able 

1  A  work  brimful  of  facts,  anecdotes,  and  'scenes  pathetic  and 
painful,  with  reference  to  Mr.  Gongh's  life  and  Temperance  work. 
Hodder  and  Stoughton,  27  Paternoster  Row. 


Pastor  0.  H.  Spurgeon.  183 

to  say  that  1  know  he  is  at  present,  and  has  been 
for  some  time,  a  total  abstainer ;  and  that  when  he 
took  stimulants  it  was  by  his  physician's  prescription. 
When  he  took  them,  he  made  no  secret  of  his  course, 
but  freely  spoke  of  it,  wherever  he  might  be. 

"Personally,  he  is  fascinating.  He  may  not  be 
called  prepossessing ;  but  there  is  nothing  finical 
about  him,  nor  the  shadow  of  a  sham.  Some  one  has 
said, '  His  face  is  heavy ; '  but  when  illuminated  by  a 
smile,  it  is  beautiful.  His  first  greeting  captured  me. 
I  think  the  few  hours  spent  with  him  were  as  delight- 
ful and  profitable  as  any  in  my  life.  He  is  full  of 
genial  humor.  His  laugh  is  infectious.  Yet  with  all 
his  wit  and  fun,  with  the  keenest  faculty  of  seeing  the 
ludicrous  side  of  things,  there  is  no  unbecoming  levity. 
It  would  not  shock  you  if  after  a  hearty  laugh  he 
should  say,  '  Let  us  have  a  word  of  prayer.' 

"  I  would  like  to  give  you  one  incident  to  illustrate 
the  man  in  his  greatness  and  simplicity.  He  wished 
me  to  visit  his  Boys'  Orphanage  at  Stockwell.  I 
could  go  only  on  Saturday,  and  his  note  to  me  was 
characteristic  :  — 

"  '  Beloved  Friend,  —  Although  I  never  go  out  on 
Saturdays,  my  horses,  being  under  the  law  and  not 
under  grace,  keep  the  seventh  day  Sabbath,  yet  we 
will  arrange  to  visit,'  etc. 

"  A  beautiful  day  it  was,  for  London,  as  we  rode 
together  chatting  all  the  way.  .  .  .  When  we  entered 


184  Lif^-  ctncl  Labors  of 

the  grounds  the  boys  set  up  a  shout  of  jo}^  at  the 
sight  of  their  benefactor. 

"  I  asked,  '  What  are  the  requirements  for  ad- 
mission ? ' 

"  He  said, '  Utter  destitution.  Nothing  denomina- 
tional. We  have  more  of  the  Church  of  Ena^land 
than  the  Baptists.  We  have  Roman  Catholics,  Pres- 
byterians, Methodists  —  all  sorts.' 

"  After  the  boys  had  gone  through  their  gymnastic 
drill,  I  spoke  a  few  words  to  them.  Mr.  Spurgeon 
was  like  a  great  boy  among  boys. 

"  He  said, '  There  are  two  hundred  and  forty  boys  ^ 
—  only  think  I  How  many  pence  are  there  in  a 
shilling  ? ' 

"  '  Twelve.' 

"  '  Right.     How  many  shillings  in  a  pound  ? ' 

" '  Twenty.' 

"  '  Right.     Twelve  times  twenty,  how  many  ? ' 

"  '  Two  hundred  and  forty. 

" '  That 's  a  penny  a  piece  for  each  boy.  Here, 
Mr.  Charles  worth,'  handing  him  a  sovereign,  '  give 
these  boys  a  penny  a  piece ; '  Avhen  a  shrill,  hearty 
hurrah  was  given  as  Mr.  Spurgeon  turned  away  with 
a  laugh  of  keen  enjoyment. 

"'Will  you  go  to  the  infirmary?'  said  he.  'We 
have  an  infirmary  and  quarantine  ;  for  sometimes  the 
poor  creatures  we  take  in  need  a  good  deal  of  purify- 
ing.    We  have  one  boy  very  ill  with  consumption ;  he 

1  The  Girls'  Orphanage  had  not  then  been  instituted. 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  185 

cannot  live,  and  I  wish  to  see  him,  for  he  would  be 
disappointed  if  he  knew  I  had  been  here  and  had 
not  seen  him.' 

"  We  went  into  the  cool  and  sweet  chamber,  and 
there  lay  the  boy.  He  was  very  much  excited  when 
he  saw  Mr.  Spurgeon.  The  great  preacher  sat  by 
his  side,  and  I  cannot  (fitly)  describe  the  scene. 
Holding  the  boy's  hand  in  his,  he  said  :  — 

" '  Well,  my  dear  boy,  you  have  some  precious 
promises  all  round  the  room.  Now,  dear  child,  you 
are  going  to  die,  and  you  are  very  tired  lying  here, 
and  soon  you  will  be  free  from  all  pain,  and  you  will 
be  at  rest.     Nurse,  did  he  rest  last  night  ?' 

" '  He  coughed  very  much.' 

" '  Ah,  my  dear  boy,  it  seems  hard  for  you  to  be 
here  all  day  in  pain,  and  to  cough  all  night.  Do 
you  love  Jesus  ? '  » 

'' '  Yes.' 

*' '  Jesus  loves  you.  He  bought  you  with  His 
precious  blood,  and  He  knows  what  is  best  for  you. 
It  seems  hard  for  you  to  be  here  and  listen  to  the 
shouts  of  the  healthy  boys  outside  at  play.  But  soon 
Jesus  will  take  you  home,  and  then  He  will  tell  you 
the  reason,  and  you  will  be  so  glad.' 

"  Then,  laying  his  hand  on  the  boy,  without  the 
formality  of  kneeling,  he  said,  '  0  Jesus,  Master,  this 
dear  child  is  reaching  out  his  thin  hand  to  find 
Thine!  Touch  him,  dear  Saviour,  with  Thy  living, 
warm  clasp.     Lift  him   as  he  passes  the  cold  river, 


186  Life  and  Labors  of 

that  his  feet  be  not  chilled  by  the  water  of  death ; 
take  him  home  in  Thine  own  good  time.  Comfort 
and  cherish  him  till  that  good  time  comes.  Show 
him  Thyself  as  he  lies  here,  and  let  him  see  Thee  and 
know  Thee  more  and  more  as  his  loving  Saviour.' 

"  After  a  moment's  pause  he  said, '  Now,  dear  boy, 
is  there  anything  you  would  like  ?  Would  you  like  a 
canary  in  a  cage  to  hear  him  sing  in  the  morning  ? 
Nurse,  see  that  he  has  a  canary  to-morrow  morning. 
Good-by,  my  dear  boy ;  you  will  see  the  Saviour,  per- 
haps, before  I  shall ! ' 

"  I  had  seen  Mr.  Spurgeon  holding  by  his  power 
sixty-five  hundred  people  in  breathless  interest ;  I 
knew  him  as  a  great  man  universally  esteemed  and 
beloved ;  but  as  he  sat  by  the  bedside  of  a  dying 
child,  whom  his  beneficence  had  rescued,  he  was  to 
me  a  greater  and  a  grander  man  than  when  swaying 
the  mighty  multitude  at  his  will." 

Our  sketch  of  the  Stockwell  Orphanage  would  not 
be  complete  without  referring  to  Mr.  Charlesworth, 
the  Head  Master.  He  is  a  man  widely  known,  and 
much  appreciated  and  esteemed,  not  only  by  the 
President,  the  Vice-President,  and  the  Trustees,  but 
by  all  who  know  him,  and  especially  know  his  solid 
worth.  For  some  years  he  was  co-pastor  with  Rev. 
Newman  Hall,  when  the  congregation  now  assembling 
at  Christ  Church  met  at  Surrey  Chapel,  where  Rev. 
James  Sherman  so  ably  ministered,  and  where  its 
founder,  Rev.  Rowland  Hill,  conducted,  as  one  of  its 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  187 

chief  centres,  his  successful  ministry.  Soon  after 
Mr.  Charles  worth  became  a  Baptist,  the  post,  which 
he  has  so  long  and  so  satisfactorily  filled,  became 
vacant ;  and  Mr.  Spurgeon  was  guided  to  Mr.  Charles- 


worth  by  that  kind  Providence  whose  guidance  he  so 
trustfully  seeks,  and  so  faithfully  follows.  He  is  in 
the  prime  of  life;  and  all  ^vho  know  him  will  unite 
in  the  prayer  that  he  may  be  long  spared  to  discharge 
the  duties  for  which  he  is  in  every  way  so  well  fitted. 


CHAPTER   XV. 


MRS.    SPURGEON's    BOOK   FUND. 


IT  is  commonly  known  that  Mrs.  Spurgeon  has 
been  for  many  years  a  great  invalid.  More  than 
twenty  years  ago  her  life  was  despaired  of ;  but  God, 
if  He  has  not  restored  her  to  health,  has  preserved 
her  life,  and  made  that  life  from  year  to  year  more 
valuable  to  the  church  and  to  the  world.  Her  visit  to 
Mentone  with  her  husband,  after  his  long  illness, 
gives  hope  that  she  may  yet  recover  complete  health 
and  strength.  For  a  long  time  she  has  been  unable 
to  take  any  part  in  public  Christian  work,  or  to  attend 
a  service  at  the  Tabernacle ;  but  God  has  found  her 
much-needed  occupation  at  home. 

No  life  of  Mr,  Spurgeon  could  possibly  be  complete 
if  it  did  not  include  at  least  some  reference  to  the 
"  Book  Fund.''  We  cannot  introduce  this  subject 
better  than  by  giving  Mr.  Spurgeon's  own  introduc- 
tion to  his  dear  wife's  description  of  the  beginning  of 
her  work  for  poor  pastors  :  — 

"  The  beloved  writer,  with  profound  reverence  for 
our  editorial  authority,  placed  this  paper  in  our  hand 
with  a  great  deal  of  diffidence,  and  coaxingiy  entreated 


MRS.    C.    H.    SPURGEON. 


190  Life  and  Labors  of 

us  to  alter  and  amend  it,  and  make  it  presentable.  It 
is  not  in  our  heart  to  touch  a  word  of  it ;  we  could 
not  improve  it,  and  we  do  not  want  to  partake  in  the 
honor  of  it.  Every  line  cost  the  suffering  writer  pain, 
and  gave  her  joy,  and  it  shall  speak  for  itself.  We 
cannot,  dare  not  alter  it." 

"  All  last  winter,  in  th-e  sunniest  corner  of  the 
south  window  of  our  especial  sanctum,  there  stood  a 
common  garden  flowerpot,  containing  a  little  plant, 
which  we  deemed  a  marvel  of  grace  and  beauty.  We 
had  sown  some  lemon-pips  the  preceding  autumn, 
with  a  lively  hope  that  one  or  more  of  them  might 
possess  the  wonderful  life-germ,  and  we  were  well 
rewarded  for  our  confidence.  In  due  time  a  frail 
little  stem,  and  two  of  the  tiniest  leaves  that  ever 
coaxed  their  way  through  the  dark  mould,  made  their 
appearance,  and  from  that  moment  it  was  watched, 
and  watered,  and  tended  with  assiduous  care.  So 
frail  at  first,  and  delicate,  that  a  drop  of  dew  would 
have  overwhelmed  it,  it  nevertheless  soon  gained 
courage,  the  tender  stem  strengthened,  one  h\  one 
other  and  larger  leaves  unfolded  themselves,  and  the 
little  plant  stood  perfect  and  complete.  It  was  a  very 
little  thing,  but  it  gave  great  pleasure,  and  though 
some  of  the  younger  members  of  the  household  would 
occasionally  ask,  with  just  a  suspicion  of  sarcasm  in 
their  tone,  '  if  there  were  any  lemons  yet  ? '  we 
cherished  our  little    plant   even    more  lovingly,  and 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon, 


191 


thanked  God  who,  with  mfinite  tenderness  towards 
His  suffering  children,  often  deepens  and  intensifies 
their  enjoyment  of  His  daily  mercies,  throwing  a 
special  charm  around  their  comforts,  and  causing  a 

leaf,  a  floAver,  or  the  song  of  a 
bird,  to  whisper  sweet  '  comfort- 
able thoughts '  in  their  hearts. 

"  But  this  winter  our  Heavenly 
Father  has  given  us  a  better  plant 
to  care  for.  The  little  tree  of 
the  "  Book  Fund  "  sprang  from  as 
small  a  beginning  as  the  lemon- 
plant  itself,  and  we  fondly  hope 
it  is  as  surely  a  creation  of  the 
Lord's  hand.  Great  was  the  loving 
kindness  which  brought  this  plant 
into  our  sick  chamber,  and  gave 
us  the  loving  commission '  to  dress 
and  to  keep  it.'  With  what  joy 
we  received  the  charge,  and  how 
happy  the  words  made  us,  words 
fail  us  to  tell ;  but  since  the  little 
tree  has  grown  rapidly  under  the 
shadow  of  the  Lord's  blessing,  we 
thought  our  friends  would  be  interested  to  know  how 
much  and  what  manner  of  fruit  it  bears. 

"  At  first  we  intended  only  to  distribute  one  hun- 
dred copies  of  Mr.  Spurgeon's  '  Lectures  to  my 
Students  ; '  but  we  received  so  many  kind  donations 


192  Life  and  Labors  of 

from  friends  who  sympathized  with  our  wishes  that 
we  soon  became  ambitious,  and  without  discontinuing 
the  distribution  of  '  Lectures,'  we  longed  to  supply 
needy  ministers  with  the  precious  volumes  of  '  The 
Treasury  of  David,'  '  Sermons,'  etc.  This  we  have 
been  enabled  to  do,  and  the  work  goes  on  daily. 
Without  any  solicitation,  fnends  have  sent  in  X180, 
and  though  our  dear  Mr.  Editor  thinks  they  might 
not  like  their  names  to  be  published,  yet,  if  he  should 
one  day  change  his  mind,  they  are  all  ready  for  him, 
faithfully  registered.  We  keep  also  a  strict  debtor 
and  creditor  account.  Better  still,  the  Lord's  '  Book 
of  Remembrance '  is  open,  and  therein,  assuredly,  the 
names  of  all  those  who  aid  His  toiling  servants  will 
be  recorded." 

Up  to  December,  1875,  Mrs.  Spurgeon  had  dis- 
tributed — 

49  sets  of  "■  The  Treasury  of  David  "  (4  vols.  each). 
124  volumes  of  "  Treasury  "  to  complete  sets. 
167  volumes     of    "  Sermons "     to    those    already    possessing 

"  Treasury.'" 
100  volumes  of  Dr.  Fish's  '•  Handbook  of  Revivals." 
4  copies  of  "  The  Interpreter  ; "  and  a  few  of  Mr.   Spur- 
geon's  lesser  works. 

How  greatly  such  gifts  are  needed  by  ministers  of 
all  denominations,  and  how  thoroughly  they  are 
appreciated,  will  be  seen  from  the  following  extracts 
from  letters.  The  work  increases  year  by  year. 
From  the  first  it  has  not  been  restricted  to  Pastors' 
College   students,   or  even   to   Baptists,  or  Noncon- 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  193 

formists,  but  has  included  large  numbers  of  needy- 
clergymen  of  the  Church  of  England.  The  letters 
often  express  appreciation,  not  only  of  Mr.  Spurgeon's 
writings,  but,  better  still,  of  the  glorious  doctrines  of 
grace  which  he  delights  to  preach. 

A  pastor  with  a  salary  of  £80  a  year  writes  thus : 

"  Your  great  gift  to  me  came  safely  to  hand  this 
morning.  I  cannot  command  language  that  will 
adequately  convey  to  you  the  thanks  I  desire  to  offer. 
You  will  believe  me  when  I  say  that  the  gift,  and 
the  way  in  which  it  came  to  me,  thoroughly  broke 
me  down,  and  tears  of  joy  flowed  freely." 

Another  says :  — 

"  I  beg  to  acknowledge,  with  ten  thousand  thanks, 
the  receipt  of  the  precious  '  Treasury  of  David.'  I 
have  long  sighed  for  these  volumes,  but  they  were 
out  of  my  reach.  I  cannot  tell  you  with  what 
delight  I  receive  them." 

Still  another  writes  :  — 

"  My  salary  is  £60  a  year.  I  have  a  wife  and 
family.  You  will  be  able  to  conceive  my  feelings 
(on  receiving  four  vols,  of  '  The  Treasury  of  David ') 
when  I  tell  you  that  these  are  the  only  new  books  I 
have  had  for  three  years  past." 

Yet  another  says  :  — 

"  Through  the  illness  of  my  dear  wife,  ...  I  have 
been  unable  to  add  a  single  book  to  my  very,  very 
small  stock  for  the  last  two  years  ;  therefore  any 
present  of  a  book  is  most  thankfully  accepted.  .  .  . 

13 


194  Life  and  Labors  of 

May  the  Lord  raise  up  many  more  friends,  so  that 
you  may  be  able  to  help  poor  ministers  yet  more 
and  more  !  " 

These  are  a  few  out  of  a  selection  quoted  by  Mrs. 
Spurgeon,  Avho  says,  respecting  her  own  joy  in  this 
needful  and  blessed  work :  — 

"  Perhaps  my  dear  Mr.  Editor  will  accord  me  the 
privilege  of  laying  aside  for  a  moment  that  formal 
and  perplexing  '  we,'  and  allow  me  to  say  how  deeply 
I  am  personally  indebted  to  the  dear  friends  who 
have  furnished  me  with  the  means  of  making  others 
happy.  For  me  there  has  been  a  double  blessing. 
I  have  been  both  recipient  and  donor,  and  in  such  a 
case  as  this  it  is  hard  to  say  which  is  the  '  more 
blessed.'  My  days  have  been  made  indescribably 
bright  and  happy  by  the  delightful  duties  connected 
with  the  work  and  its  little  arrangements,  and  so 
many  loving  messages  have  come  to  me  in  letters, 
such  kind  words,  such  hearty  good  wishes,  such 
earnest,  fervent  prayers  have  surrounded  me,  that  I 
seem  to  be  living  in  an  atmosphere  of  blessing  and 
love,  and  can  truly  say  with  the  Psalmist,  ^  my  cup 
runneth  over.'  So,  with  a  heart  full  of  gratitude  to 
God,  and  deep  thankfulness  to  my  dear  friends,  I  bid 
them  for  the  present  a  loving  farewell. 

"  Susie  Spurgeon." 

The  applications  for  books  continued  to  grow 
month   by  month,   and  year   by  year.     In   the   No- 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  195 

vember  number  of  "  The  Sword  and  the  Trowel," 
1879,  Mr.  Spurgeon  himself  puts  in  a  word  for  the 
Fund,  and  records  a  special  interposition  of  the  Lord 
in  a  time  of  great  need.     He  says :  — 

"  The  needful  work  of  supplying  ministers  with 
books  proceeds  with  great  regularity,  and  consider- 
able numbers  of  curates  and  poor  ministers  of  the 
Charcli  of  England,  together  with  pastors  of  all  de- 
nominations, apply  for  '  The  Treasury  of  David '  and 
other  works.  Could  our  readers  see  the  letters  of 
thanks,  they  would  know  how  sharp  is  the  book- 
hunger  which  gnaws  the  soul  of  many  a  preacher  of 
the  Word.  We  have  said  very  little  of  late  about 
this  work,  which  is  carried  on  by  our  beloved.  Only 
a  few  friends  have  thought  of  the  Fund  of  late,  and 
yet,  hitherto,  there  has  been  no  lack.  The  Fund 
personified  might  almost  say, '  I  am  poor  and  needy, 
yet  the  Lord  thinketh  upon  me.'  Note  the  following 
fact,  and  let  the  Lord  be  glorified  by  the  rehearsal 
of  it. 

"  A  friend  of  ours,  who  is  always  a  princely  giver, 
told  us,  on  the  night  of  Mr.  Gough's  lecture,  that 
he  would  call  at  Xiglitingale  Lane  the  next  day. 
Knowing:  his  o*reat  business  and  our  own,  we  half 
declined  the  offer,  though  we  are  always  glad  to  see 
him.  But  he  said  he  would  come,  and  come  he  did. 
His  errand  was  to  give  ^£100  to  the  Book  Fund. 
Now,  reader,  mark  this.  Mrs.  Spurgeon's  quarter's 
bill  for  books  came  in  that  very  Saturday  evening ; 


196  Life  ayid  Labors  of 


and  had  not  that  friend  insisted  on  coming  down 
and  bringing  the  <£100,  our  dear  one  would  have 
been  <£60  in  debt.  She  would  have  been  almost 
heart-broken  had  this  been  the  case  ;  for  she  had 
prayed  for  help,  and  expected  it.  The  Lord  would 
not  let  her  have  the  trial,  but  sent  His  steward  at 
the  verv  hour,  thous-h  he  knew  nothino'  of  the  need. 
We  were  both  filled  with  adoring  thankfulness  for 
this  memorable  interposition.  It  was  not  the  first 
time  in  which  we  have  together  adored  the  Lord 
in  an  amazement  of  gratitude,  nor  will  it  be  the 
last.  Thus  by  one  and  another  the  Lord  has  filled 
up  the  reservoir  which  supplies  so  many  of  his 
poor  ministers  with  refreshment :  and  He  will  do  it 


ao'ain." 


In  the  Magazine  for  the  following  month,  Mr. 
Spurgeon  says : — 

"  Mrs.  Spurgeon  has,  for  some  time,  been  largely 
occupied  with  supplying  books  to  clergymen  of  the 
Church  of  Ejigiand,  whose  stipends  are  too  small 
to  allow  them  to  purchase  them.  The  amount  of 
kindly  feeling  which  has  been  expressed  is  very 
pleasing,  and  we  regard  this  opportunity  of  spread- 
ing evangelical  truth  as  a  peculiarly  valuable  one, 
which  should  be  largely  used." 

But  our  space  is  too  limited  to  enlarge  this 
chapter  as  we  could,  and  should  be  greatly  pleased 
to  do.  We  must  refer  our  readers  to  one  of  the 
daintiest  of  dainty  volumes,  entitled  "  Ten  years  of 


Pastor  C  H.  Spurgeon.  197 

my  Life  in  the  Service  of  the  Book  Fund,"  ^  and  also 
to  the  subsequent  Annual  Reports,  which  are  unlike 
Reports  in  general,  alike  for  the  exceedingly  tasteful 
way  in  which  they  are  got  up,  their  very  touching  re- 
lations of  ministerial  privation  and  thankfulness,  and 
the  many  tender  and  precious  thoughts  of  the  writer. 

In  speaking  of  Mr.  Spurgeon' s  Sermons  and  other 
works,  in  a  subsequent  chapter,  we  shall  have  to 
refer  to  the  Report  for  1890.  But  this  may  be  the 
proper  place  to  record  the  summary  of  the  work  of 
the  Book  Fund  for  1890 :  — 

Books  distributed,  6,867  volumes. 

This  number  included  — 

"  Treasury  of  David  " 1,305  vols. 

Sermons «     .     .     .       510  " 

"  The  Hereafter,"  by  the  late  James  Fyfe  (Conference 

present) 400  " 

"  Lectures  to  my  students  " 668  " 

"  My  Sermon-Notes " 488  " 

Watson's  "  Body  of  Divinity " 76  '•' 

Selected  Sermons  on  "  Soul-Winning,"  &c 498  " 

Smaller  Works  of  Mr.  Spurgeon 898  " 

Gifts  of  Books  from  friends 1,134  " 

besides  smaller  quantities  of  other  valuable  w^orks. 

During  the  fifteen  years  of  the  existence  of  the 
Book  Fund  no  less  than  122,129  volumes  have  been 
distributed.  In  1890  the  distribution  was  to  four 
hundred    and    eighty-four   recipients,   as   follows :  — 

1  "  Ten  Years  of  my  Life  in  the  Service  of  the  Book  Fund."  By 
Mrs.  C.  H.  Spurgeon.    Price  3s.  6d.,  and  5s.    Passraore  &  Alabaster. 


198 


Life  and  Labors  of 


119  Baptists,  76  Independents,  100  Methodists,  122 
clergymen,  7  Presbyterians,  48  missionaries,  1  Luth- 
eran, and  2  Moravians. 

In  a  kind  of  sub-preface  to  this  Report  Mr.  Spur- 
geon  gives  the  following  charming  parable :  "  I  saw 
in  my  dream,"  says  the  writer,  "  a  man  worn  and 
weary  with  working  the  handle  of  a  pump  from  which 
no  water  came.  Hard  by  was  his  garden,  and  all  the 
plants  and  flowers  were  pining  for  water ;  but  he 
had   none   to    give    them.     Then    I    saw   a  woman 


coming  towards  him,  bearing  a  pitcher  of  water. 
She  stopped  and  spoke  cheeringly  to  the  weary  one ; 
and  anon  she  smilingly  poured  the  contents  of  her 
pitcher  down  the  pump,  and  immediately  it  began 
to  work,  and  pour  forth  waters  of  its  own.  How 
the  husbandman  blessed  her ! 

"  I  think  I  know  that  woman ;  and  sure  I  am  that 
often  the  reading  of  a  new  book,  sent  from  the  Book 
Fund,  enables  a  mind  to  work  with  success,  which 
previously  had  been  exhausted  by  labor  in  vain  in 
the  Lord." 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  199 

Clergymen  of  the  Church  of  England,  as  we  have 
seen,  come  in  for  the  largest  share  of  the  Book  Fund 
gifts.  The  J  are  not  behind  the  rest  of  the  recipients 
in  the  expression  of  their  thankfulness. 

A  clergyman  in  the  Midland  counties  writes :  — 

"  So  far  as  help  in  my  pastoral  work  is  concerned, 
I  use  Mr.  Spurgeon's  writings  more  than  all  others  I 
possess.  I  look  upon  the  rest  of  my  books  as  a  sort 
of  reference  library,  but  his  volumes  are  always  near 
at  hand. 

"  Of  course,  as  a  Churchman,  I  occasionally  find  '  a 
hard  nut  to  crack,'  but  I  either  crack  it  or  pass  it 
by ;  it  does  not  interfere  with  the  general  profit  I 
receive  from  his  works.  I  have  learned  a  good  lesson 
also  through  my  correspondence  with  you,  for  I  have 
placed  a  '  seed-basket '  beside  my  writing-desk,  and  I 
am  dropping  a  grain  in  each  letter  as  it  leaves  me. 

"  Wishing  you  God's  blessing  on  your  noble  work. 
"  Yours  faithfully. 


li 


A  London  curate  writes  thus  :  — 

"  Dear  Mrs.  Spurgeon,  —  The  commonest  gratitude 
would  call  for  a  letter  of  thanks  from  me,  for  your 
great  kindness  in  sending  me  such  useful  books  ; 
but  I  feel  uncommonly  grateful,  though  it  is  diffi- 
cult to  testify  to  the  fact.  The  note  which  you  en- 
closed, presenting  the  books,  I  shall  paste  into  the 
first  volume  of  "  The  Treasury,"  and  always  be  ready 


200  Life  and  Labors  of 

to  show  it  with  thankfulness.  I  do  pray  for  an  in- 
creasing blessing  on  your  Book  Fund.  There  can 
scarcely  be  any  agency  at  work  more  widely  useful. 
"Who  can  tell  the  sum  of  blessing  issuing  from  those 
books  through  hundreds  of  ministers  ? 
"  Yours  gratefully, 


a 


From  the  centre  of  the  country  comes  this  warm 
and  grateful  letter  :  — 

"  Dear  Madam,  —  Your  extraordinary  liberality,  in 
the  splendid  gift  of  books  to  me,  has  completely 
taken  me  by  surprise.  I  scarcely  know  what  to  say, 
nor  how  to  express  my  tlianks  for  your  kind  gen- 
erosity. When  I  say,  '  thank  you,'  believe  me  that 
I  am  expressing  in  the  heartiest  possible  way  my 
feeling  of  the  deepest  gratitude. 

"  I  have  to-da}'  been  indulging  in  reading  one  of 
the  '  Lectures  to  Students.'  Dear  me,  Mr.  Spurgeon 
hits  us  Church  clergy  very,  very  hard ;  and  I  believe 
we  deserve  it.  I  do  trust  that,  by  studying  the  vol- 
umes you  have  sent,  I  may,  with  the  blessing  of  God, 
catch  some  of  the  enthusiasm  which  fires  your  hus- 
band, —  that  I  may  be  emboldened  to  go  forth  more 
fearlessly   than   heretofore,  helping   in   the   warfare 

against  sin. 

"  Yours  faithfully, 


"o" 


Mrs.  Spurgeon's  ''  Annual  Reports  "  are  little  liter- 
ary gems,  and  there  is  no  wonder  that  they  are  so 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  201 

highly  prized  by  lier  subscribers,  and  purchased  so 
largely  by  the  general  public.  In  addition  to  full 
particulars  of  the  Book  Fund,  they  contain  exquisite 
expositions  of  passages  of  Scripture,  or  parables  and 
illustrations  of  various  phases  of  spiritual  experience. 
Twelve  of  these  have  been  selected  from  the  reports 
and  issued  by  Messrs.  Passmore  &  Alabaster  under 
the  title  of  "  Westwood  Leaflets."  ^  They  have  very 
deservedly  had  a  large  sale. 

We  close  this  chapter  regretfully,  because  there  is 
so  much  we  would  wish  to  say,  so  much  we  would 
like  to  quote,  and,  not  least,  so  much  that  it  would 
be  only  right  to  state  as  to  the  need  of  the  work,  the 
quiet,  unobtrusive  way  in  which  it  is  conducted,  and, 
more  than  all,  the  beautiful  and  truly  Christian  spirit 
of  the  much  afflicted  but  much  honored  lady  who, 
in  the  sweetest,  tenderest,  and  most  unaffectedly 
humble  way,  does  the  work  of  God's  almoner  towards 
some  of  the  worthiest  of  the  Master's  many  servants, 
respecting  neither  livery  nor  badge,  name  nor  de- 
nomination. May  the  gracious  Lord  long  spare  her, 
and  her  beloved  husband,  to  be  a  blessing  to  the 
weary  workers,  and  to  pour  living  water  into  the 
often  dry  pumps  of  jaded  minds ! 

1  "  Westwood  Leaflets."    Bv  Mrs.  C.  H.  Spurgeon. 


1» 


pi^fj^fe^^^^M? 


CHAPTER   XYL 


MR.    SPURCxEON  S   JUBILEE. 

THE  approach  of  this  interesting  period  in  the 
life  of  their  pastor  drew  forth  alike  the  love, 
the  energies,  and  the  liberality  of  his  numerous  flock. 
It  could  not  be  other  than  a  great  occasion ;  and 
such  it  was  in  all  respects.  Two  great  meetings 
were  held  in  the  Tabernacle  in  connection  with  the 
celebration ;  the  first  on  Wednesday  evening^  June 
18^A,  1884,  and  the  second  the  following  evening,  the 
pastor's  fiftieth  birthday.  Over  the  former  meeting 
Mr.  Spurgeon  presided.  Tiie  proceedings  commenced 
with  the  singing  of  the  hymn  commencing  — 

"  All  hail  the  power  of  Jesus'  name !  " 

Mr.  Spurgeon  then  proceeded  to  say  :  — 
"My  one  deep  anxiety  and  prayer  has  been  that 
every  part  of  the  proceedings  of  these  two  days 
should  be  to  the  glory  of  God.  It  would  be  deeply 
to  my  grief,  as  long  as  ever  I  lived,  if  there  should  be 
anything  said  or  done  which  should  be  contrary  to 
the  mind  of  our  Lord.  We  meet  together,  with  con- 
gratulations very  hearty  and  very  loving.     I  cannot 


Life  of  Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  203 

tell  5^ou  how  hearty  and  how  loving  they  have  been 
already  ;  but  we  want  God's  blessing,  or  we  shall  fall 
into  evil  rather  than  good.  I  want  the  brethren 
representing  the  deacons  and  the  elders  to  pray  very 
briefly,  if  they  please,  but  I  am  sure  very  heartily, 
for  God's  blessing  upon  us  now." 

After  these  prayers,  Mr.  Spurgeon  continued  :  — 
"Now,  dear  friends,  having  thus  sought  the 
divine  blessing,  we  expect  to  have  it.  I  do  not 
think  anybody  imagines  that  I  ought  to  speak  at  any 
length  to-night,  but  I  should  like  to  say  very  much 
in  very  little.  I  feel  to-night  overwhelmed  with 
gratitude  to  you,  and  because  of  you,  to  God.  I  am 
sure  I  went  home  on  Monday  night  feeling  that  I 
was  buried  in  mercies,  crushed  beneath  the  weight 
of  God's  loving-kindness  to  me.  I  feel  just  so  to- 
night ;  therefore  I  cannot  speak  much,  especiall}" 
after  the  kind  things  which  many  of  you  have  said 
to  me.  I  have  much  to  do  not  to  cry  ;  indeed,  I  have 
had  a  little  distillation  of  the  eyes  quietly,  but  I  try 
to  keep  myself  all  right.  I  feel  very  much  like 
weeping  now,  at  the  remembrance  of  all  the  good 
and  gracious  things  that  have  been  said  to  me  this 
day.  But  let  me  say  this  for  my  speech :  the  bless- 
ins;  which  I  have  had  here  for  manv  vears  must  be 
entirely  attributed  to  the  grace  of  God  and  the  work- 
ing of  God's  Holy  Spirit  among  us.  Let  that  stand 
as  a  matter  not  only  taken  for  granted,  but  as  felt 
and  distinctly  recognized  among  us. 


204  Life  and  Labors  of 

"  I  hope,  brethren,  that  none  of  you  will  say  that 
I  have  kept  back  the  glorious  work  of  the  Holy 
Spirit.  I  have  tried  to  remind  you  of  it  whenever  I 
have  read  a  chapter,  by  praying  that  God  the  Holy 
Spirit  would  open  up  that  chapter  to  our  minds.  I 
hope  I  have  never  preached  without  an  entire  de- 
pendence on  the  Holy  Ghost.  Our  reliance  upon 
prayer  has  been  very  conspicuous,  —  at  least,  I  think 
so.  TVe  have  not  begun,  we  have  not  continued,  we 
have  not  ended  anything  without  prayer.  We  have 
been  plunged  into  it  up  to  the  hilt.  We  have  not 
prayed  as  we  should,  but  still  we  have  so  prayed  as 
to  prevail ;  and  we  wish  it  to  be  on  record  that  we 
owe  our  success  as  a  church  to  the  work  of  the  Holy 
Spirit,  principally  through  its  leading  us  to  pray. 
Neither  as  a  church  have  we  been  without  a  full  con- 
viction that  if  we  are  honest  in  our  asking  we  must 
be  earnest  in  actino;.  It  is  no  use  asking:  God  to 
give  us  a  blessing  if  Ave  do  not  mean  it ;  and  if  we 
mean  it  we  shall  use  all  the  means  appointed  for  the 
gaining  of  that  boon ;  and  that  we  have  done. 

'•  One  of  my  first  duties  to-night  will  be  to  remind 
this  audience  that  it  very  largely  consists  of  repre- 
sentatives from  the  various  institutions.  A  partial 
list  will  be  read  to  you,  but,  incomplete  as  it  is,  it  is 
a  lono:  one  ;  and  thous-h  one  or  two  of  the  institu- 
tions  represented  may  be  small  ones,  yet  many  of 
them  are  so  large  that  they  might  have  constituted 
public   societies   having   annual   meetings   at  Exeter 


Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeon.  205 

Hall;  and  these  things  have  sprung  on.  of  this 
church  through  that  same  Holy  Spirit  who  set  us 
praying,  and  set  us  working.  Next  to  that,  it  be- 
hooves me  to  say  that  I  owe  the  prosperity  I  have  had 
in  preaching  the  gospel  to  the  gospel  which  I  have 
preached.  I  wish  everybody  thought  as  much ;  but 
there  are  some  who  will  have  it  that  there  is  some- 
thing very  particular  and  special  about  the  preacher. 
Well,  I  believe  there  may  be  something  particular 
about  the  man,  something  odd,  perhaps.  He  can- 
not help  that,  but  he  begs  to  say  -there  is  nothing 
about  him  that  can  possibly  account  for  the  great  and 
long-continued  success  attending  his  labors. 

''  Our  American  friends  are  generally  very  'cute 
judges ;  and  I  have  a  good  many  times  read  their 
opinion  of  me,  and  they  say,  over  and  over  again, 
'  Well,  he  is  no  orator.  We  have  scores  of  better 
preachers  than  Mr.  Spurgeon  in  America,  but  it  is 
evident  that  he  preaches  the  gospel  as  certain  of  our 
celebrated  men  do  not  preach  it.'  I  so  preach  the 
gospel  that  people  coming  to  hear  it  are  impressed  by 
it,  and  rejoice  to  rally  to  the  standard.  1  have  tried, 
and  I  think  successfully,  to  saturate  our  dear  friends 
with  the  doctrines  of  grace.  I  defy  the  devil  himself 
ever  to  get  that  out  of  you  if  God  the  Holy  Spirit 
once  puts  it  into  you.  That  grand  doctrine  of  substi- 
tution, which  is  at  the  root  of  every  other  —  you  have 
heard  it  over  and  over  and  over  again,  and  you  have 
taken  a  sure  grip  of  it.     Never   let   it   go.     And  I 


206  Life  and  Labors  of 

wish  to  say  to  all  preachers  who  fail  in  this  matter 
that  I  wish  thev  would  preach  more  of  Christ,  and 
try  to  preach  more  plainly.  Death  to  fine  preaching ! 
There  is  no  good  in  it.  All  the  glory  of  words  and 
the  wisdom  of  men  will  certainly  come  to  nought ; 
but  the  simple  testimony  of  the  good-will  of  God  to 
men,  and  of  His  sovereign  choice  of  His  own  people, 
will  stand  the  test  not  only  of  the  few  years  during 
which  I  have  preached  it,  but  of  all  the  ages  of  this 
world  till  Christ  shall  come. 

"I  thank  you,,  dear  friends,  for  all  your  love  and 
your  kindness  to  me,  but  I  do  attribute  even  that  in 
great  measure  to  this  fact ;  I  do  not  believe  that  the 
dry,  dead  doctrine  of  some  men  could  ever  have 
evoked  such  sympathy  in  men's  hearts  as  my  gospel 
has  aroused  in  yours.  I  cannot  see  anything  about 
myself  that  you  should  love  me ;  I  confess  I  would 
not  go  across  the  street  to  hear  myself  preach.  But 
I  dare  not  say  more  upon  that  point  because  my 
wife  is  here.  It  is  the  only  point  upon  which  we 
decidedly  differ ;  I  differ  in  foto  from  her  estimate  of 
me,  and  from  your  estimate  of  me  too,  but  yet  I  do 
not  wish  you  to  alter  it.  You  remember  the  picture 
'  Punch '  gave  us  of  the  man  and  his  wife  who  had 
bought  a  teapot;  they  were  aesthetic,  and  she  said, 
'  Oh,  what  a  teapot ! '  '  Yes,'  said  the  husband,  '  I  do 
not  know  how  we  shall  ever  be  able  to  live  up  to  it.' 
That  was  their  high  ideal ;  but  the  model  you  set  up 
for  me,  in  your  kindly  estimate  of  me,  is  one  which  I 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  207 

must  labor  to  reach.  An3^thing  that  stimulates  us 
to  do  better  cannot  be  a  very  bad  thing ;  therefore  I 
thank  you  with  all  my  heart  for  your  generous 
esteem." 

Mr.  Spurgeon's  private  secretary,  Mr.  J.  W.  Har- 
rald,  then  read  a  list  of  societies  represented  at  the 
meeting;  after  which  Mr.  Spurgeon  said:  "We  have 
need  to  praise  God  that  he  enables  the  church  to 
carry  on  all  these  institutions.  Let  us  sing  the 
hymn,  '  Hallelujah  for  the  Cross.' 

"  I  want  you  now  to  hear  me  a  moment  while  I 
say  that  the  brother  who  is  now  about  to  speak, 
Mr.  Moody,  is  one  whom  we  all  love.  He  is  not  only 
one  whom  we  all  love,  but  he  is  evidently  one  whom 
God  loves.  We  feel  devoutly  grateful  to  Almighty 
God  for  raising  him  up,  and  for  sending  him  to 
England  to  preach  the  gospel  to  such  great  numbers 
with  such  plainness  and  power.  We  shall  continue 
to  pray  for  him  when  he  has  gone  home.  Among 
the  things  we  shall  pray  for  will  be  that  he  may 
come  back  again.  I  might  quote  the  language  of  an 
old  Scotch  song  with  regard  to  Prince  Charlie  —    • 

* "  Bonnie  Moody 's  gaun  awa, 

Will  ye  no  come  back  again  ? 
Better  loved  ye  cauna  be, 

Will  ye  no  come  back  again  ? '  " 

Mr.  D.  L.  Moody  said:  "Mr.  Spurgeon  told  us 
that  he  has  felt  like  weeping.  I  have  tried  to  keep 
back  the  tears.     I  have  not  succeeded  very  well.     I 


208  Life  and  Labors  of 

remember,  seventeen  years  ago,  coming  into  this 
building  a  perfect  stranger.  Twenty-five  years  ago, 
after  I  was  converted,  I  began  to  read  of  a  young 
man  preaching  in  London  with  great  power,  and  a 
desire  seized  me  to  hear  him,  never  expecting  that 
some  day  I  should  be  a  preacher.  Everything  that 
I  could  get  hold  of  in  print  that  he  ever  said,  I  read. 
I  knew  very  little  about  religious  things  when  I  was 
converted.  I  did  not  have  what  he  has  had  —  a 
praying  father.  My  father  died  before  I  was  four 
years  old.  I  was  thinking  of  that  to-night  as  I  saw 
Mr.  Spurgeon's  venerable  father  here  by  his  side. 
He  has  the  advantage  of  me  in  that  respect,  and  he 
perhaps  got  an  earlier  start  than  he  would  have  got 
if  he  had  not  had  that  praying  father.  His  mother  I 
have  not  met,  his  father  I  have  ;  but  most  good  men 
have  praying  mothers  —  God  bless  them!  In  1867  I 
made  my  way  across  the  sea,  and  if  ever  there  was 
a  sea-sick  man  for  fourteen  days,  I  was  that  one. 
The  first  place  to  which  I  came  was  this  building. 
I  was  told  that  I  could  not  get  in  without  a  ticket, 
but  I  made  up  my  mind  to  get  in  somehow,  and  I 
succeeded.  I  well  remember  seating  myself  in  this 
gallery.  I  remember  the  very  seat,  and  I  should  like 
to  take  it  back  to  America  with  me.  As  your  dear 
pastor  walked  down  to  the  platform,  my  eyes  just 
feasted  upon  him,  and  my  heart's  desire  for  years 
was  at  last  accomplished.  It  happened  to  be  the  very 
year  you  preached  in  the  Agricultural  Hall.     I  fol- 


Pastor  C.  H,  Spurgeon.  209 

lowed  you  up  there,  and  you  sent  me  back  to  America 
a  better  man.  Then  I  went  to  try  and  preach  my- 
self, though  at  the  time  I  little  thought  I  should  ever 
be  able  to  do  so.  While  I  was  here  T  followed  Mr. 
Spurgeon  everywhere,  and  when  at  home  people  asked 
me  if  I  had  gone  to  this  and  that  cathedral  I  had  to 
say  '  No,'  and  confess  I  was  ignorant  of  them ;  but  I 
could  tell  them  something  about  the  meetings  ad- 
dressed by  Mr.  Spurgeon. 

"  In  1872  I  thought  I  would  come  over  again  to 
learn  a  little  more,  and  again  I  found  my  way  back 
to  this  gallery.  I  haA^e  been  here  a  great  many 
times  since,  and  I  never  come  into  the  building 
without  getting  a  blessing  to  my  soul.  I  think  I  have 
had  as  great  a  one  here  to-night  as  at  any  other  time 
I  have  been  in  this  Tabernacle.  When  I  look  down 
on  these  orphan  boys,  when  I  think  of  the  600  ser- 
vants of  God  who  have  gone  out  from  the  College  to 
preach  the  gospel,  of  the  1,500  or  2,000  sermons 
from  this  pulpit  that  are  in  print,  and  of  the  multi- 
tude of  books  that  have  come  from  the  pastor's  pen, 
—  Scripture  says  of  the  making  of  books  there  is 
no  end,  and  in  his  case  it  is  indeed  true,  —  1  would 
fain  enlarge  upon  all  these  good  works,  but  the 
clock  shows  me  that,  if  I  do,  I  shall  not  get  to  my 
other  meeting  in  time.  But  let  me  just  say  this,  — 
If  God  can  use  Mr.  Spurgeon,  why  not  the  rest  of 
us  ?  and  why  should  not  we  all  just  lay  ourselves 
at  the  Master's  feet,  and  say,  '  Send  me,  use  me '  ? 

14 


210  Life  and  Labors  of 

It  is  not  Mr.  Spurgeon,  after  all,  it  is  God.  He  is 
as  weak  as  any  other  man  away  from  Him.  Moses 
was  nothing,  but  it  was  Moses'  God.  Sampson  was 
nothing  when  he  lost  his  strength,  but  when  it  came 
back  to  him,  then  he  was  a  mighty  man  ;  and  so, 
dear  friends,  bear  in  mind  that  if  we  can  just  link 
our  weakness  to  God's  strength,  we  can  go  forth 
and  be  a  blessing  in  the  world. 

"  Now,  there  are  others  to  speak,  and  I  have  also 
to  hasten  away  to  another  meeting,  but  I  want  to 
say  to  you,  Mr.  Spurgeon, '  God  bless  you.'  I  know 
that  you  love  me,  but  I  assure  you  I  love  you  a 
thousand  times  more  than  you  can  ever  love  me, 
because  you  have  been  such  a  blessing  to  me,  while 
I  have  been  a  very  little  blessing  to  you.  When  I 
think  of  a  man  or  a  woman  who  has  been  in  this 
Tabernacle  time  after  time,  and  heard  the  gospel,  I 
pity  them  deep  down  in  my  heart  if  they  are  found 
among  the  lost.  I  have  read  your  sermons  for 
twenty-five  years,  and  what  has  cheered  my  heart 
has  been  that  in  them  was  no  uncertain  sound. 
You  are  never  going  to  die.  John  Wesley  lives 
more  to-day  than  when  he  was  in  the  flesh ;  White- 
field  lives  more  to-day  than  when  he  was  on  this 
earth ;  John  Knox  lives  more  to-day  than  at  any 
period  of  his  earthly  life  ;  and  Martin  Luther,  who 
has  been  gone  over  300  years,  still  lives.  Bear 
in  mind,  friends,  that  our  dear  brother  is  to  live 
forever.     We    may   never   meet    together    again    in 


Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeon.  211 

the  flesh,  but  by  the  blessing  of  God,  I  will  meet  you 
up  yonder." 

Mr.  Chamberlain  having  sung  the  hymn  beginning, 

"  Whoever  receiveth  the  Crucified  One," 

the  late   Mr.  B.  W.  Carr,  one  of  the  deacons,  read 
the  following  address  to  Mr.  Spurgeon :  — 

To  THE  Rev.  C.  H.  Spurgeon,  Pastor  of  the  Church  at 
THE  Metropolitan  Tabernacle. 

With  a  united  voice  of  thanksgiving  to  our  ever  blessed  God 
on  your  behalf ;  with  a  cordial  acknowledgment  of  the  good  ser- 
vices you  have  rendered  to  the  universal  Church,  of  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  ;  and  with  a  profound  sense  of  the  high  character 
and  wide  reputation  you  have  established  among  your  fellow- 
Christians,  we  beg  to  offer  our  sincere  congratulations  on  this 
the  fiftieth  anniversary  of  your  birthday. 

Accept  our  assurance  that  no  language  but  the  language  of 
personal  affection  could  fitly  express  the  esteem  in  which  you 
are  held  by  ourselves  and  by  the  numerous  constituency  we 
represent.  Were  it  possible  for  the  lips  of  all  those  who  love 
you  as  a  brother,  and  those  who  revere  you  as  a  father  in  Christ, 
to  sound  in  your  ears  the  sentiments  of  their  hearts,  the  music 
of  their  chorus  at  this  glad  hour  would  be  like  the  noise  of  many 
waters. 

Gathered  together  as  w^e  now  are  in  this  sacred  edifice,  —  sacred 
not  by  reason  of  any  superstitious  ceremony  at  the  opening,  but 
by  the  soul-saving  miracles  of  grace  subsequentl}'-  wrought  be- 
neath its  roof,  —  it  becomes  us  to  greet  you  first  as  Pastor  of  this 
Ancient  Church.  ]\[ore  than  thirty  of  those  fifty  years  you 
chronicle  to-day  have  been  spent  in  our  midst.  As  our  Minis- 
ter, you  are  known  to  the  utmost  ends  of  the  earth.  Eichly  en- 
dowed by  the  Spirit  of  God  with  wisdom  and  discretion,  your 
conduct  as  our  Ruling  Elder  has  silenced  contention  and  pro- 
moted harmony.  The  three  hundred  souls  you  found  in  fellow- 
ship at  New  Park  Street  Chapel  have  multiplied  to  a  fellowship 


212  Life  and  Labors  of 

of  nearly  six  thousand  in  this  Tabernacle.  And  under  your 
watchful  oversight  the  family  group  has  increased  without  any 
breach  of  order. 

You  came  to  us  in  the  freshness  of  your  youth.  At  that 
flowering  age  when  boys  of  good  promise  are  wont  to  change 
their  curriculum  from  school  to  college,  you  had  already  devel- 
oped into  manliness,  and  there  was  ripe  fruit  as  well  as  pleasant 
foliage  on  your  branches.  The  groundwork  of  your  education 
appeared  to  be  so  solid,  and  the  maturity  of  your  character  so 
thoroughly  reliable,  that  you  were  unanimously  elected  by  ven- 
erable members  of  the  Church  of  Christ  to  preside  over  their 
councils.  The  fair  prospect  of  your  springtime  has  not  sulfered 
from  any  blight.  Your  natural  abilities  never  betrayed  you 
into  indolent  habits.  The  talents  you  possessed  gave  stimulus 
to  your  diligence.  A  little  prosperity  did  not  elate  you,  or  a 
measure  of  success  prompt  the  desire  to  settle  down  in  some 
quiet  resting-place.  You  spread  your  sails  to  catch  the  breeze. 
The  ascendency  you  began  to  acquire  over  the  popular  mind, 
instead  of  making  you  vainglorious,  filled  you  with  awe,  and 
increased  the  rigor  of  that  discipline  you  have  always  exercised 
over  yourself. 

These  were  happy  auguries  of  your  good  speed.  Not  that  the 
utmost  vigilance  on  your  part  could  have  sufficed  to  uphold  you 
amidst  the  vast  and  accumulating  resDonsibilities  that  have  de- 
volved  on  you  as  the  sphere  of  your  ministry  widened.  He 
who  ruleth  in  the  heavens  has  screened  you  in  times  of  peril, 
and  piloted  you  through  shoals  and  quicksands,  through  straits 
and  rapids.  His  grace  and  His  goodness,  His  promises  and  His 
providence,  have  never  failed  you.  From  the  hour  when  you 
lirst  committed  your  soul,  your  circumstances,  and  your  destinies 
to  the  keeping  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  you  have  never  feared 
such  a  disaster.  To  your  unwavering  faith  in  His  guardian 
care  we  venture  to  attribute  the  coolness  of  your  head  and  the 
courage  of  your  heart  in  all  the  great  adventures  of  your  life. 
Some  of  us  have  been  with  you  from  the  beginning  of  your 
charge.  Since  then  a  generation  has  almost  passed  away.  Ac- 
cording to  a  law  as  legibly  written  as  any  la\Y  of  nature,  the 


Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeon.  213 

Scripture  has  said,  "  Instead  of  the  fathers,  shall  be  the  chil- 
dren." Hence,  in  not  a  few  instances,  you  must  miss  the 
sires  while  you  meet  the  sons.  The  retrospect  of  your  career, 
to  those  who  have  followed  it  throughout,  appears  like  one 
unbroken  series  of  successes ;  but  as  our  memory  retraces  the 
steps  you  have  taken,  we  can  testify  to  the  exhaustive  labors  in 
which  you  have  blithely  engaged,  the  constant  self-denial  you 
have  cheerfully  exercised,  and  the  restless  anxieties  that  have 
kept  you  and  your  comrades  incessantly  calling  on  the  name  of 
the  Lord.  By  such  an  experience  you  have  enlarged  the  field  of 
evangelical  enterprise  in  the  various  institutions  of  the  church. 

And  it  has  been  your  happiness,  not  only  to  see  the  growth 
of  those  institutions  beyond  the  most  sanguine  hopes  you 
cherished  when  planting  them,  but  to  have  received  the  grateful 
thanks  of  those  who  derived  unspeakable  benefit  in  partaking 
of  their  fruits.  Such  gratitude  demands  our  notice,  though 
only  in  the  lowest  degree.  Your  skilful  generalship  has  laid 
ten  thousand  happy  donors  to  your  charities  under  lasting 
obligations  to  you  for  providing  outlets  for  their  benevolence. 
It  has  pleased  the  Lord  to  make  whatever  you  do  to  prosper. 
You  have  been  the  faithful  steward  and  the  kindly  executor 
of  hundreds  and  thousands  of  pious  individuals,  whose  fond 
design  has  been  to  lay  up  treasure  for  themselves  in  heaven  by 
paying  into  the  exchequer  on  earth  of  their  substance,  for 
the  widow  and  the  fatherless  in  their  distress,  for  the  poor 
and  those  who  have  no  helper.  Let  the  acknowledgments  of 
subscribers  to  the  various  purses  you  hold  in  your  hands,  as 
well  as  those  of  recipients,  cheer  you  as  you  enter  on  a  fresh 
decade  of  the  days  of  the  years  of  your  earthly  pilgrimage. 

An  occasion  like  this  is  so  solemn,  and  an  address  like  the 
present  is  so  serious,  that  we  may  well  search  the  sacred  volume 
for  suitable  words.  We  feel  sure  that  brethren  in  all  parts  of  the 
earth  pray  for  you.  And  we  are  equally  certain  that  the  churches 
which  are  in  Christ  throughout  the  world  glorify  God  in  you. 
The  Lord  preserve  and  keep  you  to  the  end.  To  this  hour  you 
have  maintained  an  unsullied  reputation  among  men.  Erring 
as  we  all  are  before  God,  it  is  our  sincere  conviction  that  if  such 


214  Life  and  Labors  of 

a  thing  were  possible,  a  second  edition  of  your  life,  revised  by 
yourself,  could  hardly  be  an  amendment. 

You  braved  much  calumny  on  the  outset  of  your  career,  and 
you  have  outlived  it.  The  secularists  who  once  denounced  now 
salute  you.  Where  your  theology  has  failed  to  convert  them, 
your  philanthropy  has  suflQced  to  enchant  tliem.  You  are 
lifted  in  public  esteem  above  suspicion,  as  a  true  man  —  no 
traitor  or  time-server.  Your  kindness  to  everybody  has  made 
everybody  kind  to  you.  You  have  illustrated  the  force  and  the 
fulness  of  a  divine  proverb  which  has  puzzled  many  a  philo- 
sopher :  "When  a  man's  ways  please  the  Lord,  He  maketh  even 
his  enemies  to  be  at  peace  with  him." 

If,  dear  sir,  you  give  us  full  credit  for  the  intense  sympathy 
we  have  felt  when  sickness  and  sorrow  have  weakened  your 
strength  in  the  way,  you  will  not  deny  us  the  gratification  of 
alluding  to  the  private  and  domestic  joys  that  pour  down  like 
sunbeams  on  your  face  and  gladden  your  Jubilee. 

Your  beloved  and  estimable  wife,  whose  life  long  trembled  in 
the  balance,  has  been  restored  to  health.  Had  she  been  less 
heroic  and  more  exacting  in  her*  protracted  illness,  you  must 
have  been  more  reserved  and  less  generous  in  the  consecration 
of  your  time  and  thought  to  the  good  works  you  were  doing. 
In  the  stillness  of  enforced  retirement,  her  inventive  genius 
discovered  new  channels  of  usefulness.  Her  "  Book  Fund " 
is  beyond  all  praise.  And  her  delicate  mission  has  been  so 
appreciated  that  throughout  the  British  Isles,  and  in  foreign 
lands,  her  name  has  become  linked  with  your  own  at  every 
station  where  an  ambassador  of  Christ  publishes  the  glad 
tidings  of  the  gospel. 

Your  father  and  mother,  walking  before  God  in  quiet, 
unpretentious  piety,  have  both  been  spared  to  see  their  first- 
born son  in  the  meridian  of  a  career  that  has  made  their  once 
obscure  patronymic  famous  throughout  the  world. 

Your  worthy  brother,  and  trusty  yoke-fellow  in  the  pastorate, 
is  still  by  your  side  rendering  good  service,  for  which  his  fine 
business  tact,  and  his  manly  but  modest  desire  to  second  all 
your  motions  to  go  forward,  eminently  qualify  him. 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  216 

Your  two  sons  have  both,  devoted  themselves  to  the  ministry  ; 
and  each  of  them  in  his  own  sphere  of  labor  has  found  proof 
that  he  was  divinely  anointed  to  his  pastorate. 

To  yourself,  liowever,  we  turn  as  a  central  figure,  recognized 
from  afar  by  tens  of  thousands  of  people,  to  whom  your  name 
is  an  emblem  of  purity  and  power,  and  by  whom  you  are 
accounted  second  to  none  among  living  preachers  ;  and  your 
sermons  are  appreciated  as  a  faithful  exposition  of  the  gos- 
pel of  God,  instinct  with  the  witness  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  and 
therefore  quickening  in  their  influence  on  the  consciences  and 
the  hearts  of  men. 

On  your  head  we  now  devoutly  invoke  those  blessings  which 
we  believe  the  Almighty  is  abundantly  willing  to  bestow. 

May  your  steps  in  the  future  be  ordered  of  the  Lord,  as  they 
have  been  in  the  past.  May  a  generation  yet  unborn  witness 
that  your  old  age  is  luxuriant  and  fruitful  as  your  youth. 
May  5^our  life  on  earth  wind  up  like  the  holy  Psalter  that  you 
so  much  love.  Be  it  yours  to  anchor  at  last  in  David's  Psalm 
of  Praise,  prolific  as  it  was  of  other  Psalms,  into  which  no  groan 
or  sigh  could  intrude.  So  may  you  rest  in  the  Lord  with  a 
vision  of  the  everlasting  Kingdom  dawning  on  your  eyes,  and 
Hallelujah  after  Hallelujah  resounding  in  your  ears. 

At  the  close  of  this  address  Mr.  Spurgeon  said: 
"  It  is  a  very  great  mercy  that  I  am  not  expected 
to  speak  after  that.  I  cannot  tell  where  Mr.  Carr 
can  have  gathered  ail  those  thoughts  concerning 
me.  So  far  as  this  church  and  its  institutions  are 
truly  the  work  of  God  —  and  I  believe  that  the 
work  of  God  has  been  done  among  us  —  so  far 
those  words  should  bring  glory  to  his  name  ;  and 
I  am  the  happiest  of  the  sons  of  men  if  I  have  laid 
any  trophy  at  the  foot  of  the  cross.  Now  we  are 
going  to  have  a  number  of  short  speeches,  and  my 


21G  Life  and  Labors  of 

father's  must,  of  course,  come  first.  Nobody  can  say 
that  I  am  old  \rhile  I  have  so  young  a  father, 
although  I  was  '  old  Spurgeon '  when  I  was  very 
young,  and  I  hope  I  shall  be  young  when  I  get 
very   old." 

Rev.  John  Spurgeon  said:  "My  dear  friends,  they 
say  all  things  work  together  for  good.  I  have  a 
very  bad  cold  for  one  thing,  and  have  nearly  lost 
my  voice,  and  that  is  a  very  good  reason  why  I 
should  not  speak  to-night,  because  you  will  not 
hear  me  if  I  attempt  it.  However,  this  young  man 
here  makes  me  think  of  my  father.  He  was  eighty- 
four  years  of  age,  and  when  we  were  out  walking 
together  he  walked  so  fast  that  I  lagged  behind, 
and  he  said,  '  Come  on,  boy ;  what  makes  you  lag 
behind  ? '  Charles  is  now  a  better  man  to  walk  than 
I  am,  but  in  ten  years'  time  we  shall  see,  if  we  live, 
who  can  walk  the  best.  My  father  did  all  in  his 
power  to  give  me  a  good  education,  and  advised  me  to 
make  the  best  use  of  it ;  but  I  have  never  had  the  ad- 
vantages enjoyed  by  some  ministers,  for,  like  Mr. 
Moody,  I  have  gathered  up  my  knowledge,  compara- 
tively speaking,  as  I  went  along.  But  I  think  I  have 
done  my  fair  share  of  preaching.  I  have  preached  five- 
and-forty  years,  and  the  Lord  has  blessed  it.  What 
do  you  think  was  the  text  of  the  first  sermon  I  ever 
preached  ?  Why,  '  God  is  love  !  '  and  don't  you 
think  I  could  preach  from  it  to-night  ?  He  has 
taken  care  of  me  all  my  life  long.     He  gave  me  a 


Pastor  C.  H,  Spurgeon.  217 

kind  father  and  mother,  who  prayed  very  much  for 
me,  and  their  prayers  were  heard.  And  my  son 
has  had  a  praying  father  and  mother,  and  his 
mother's  prayers  have  been  heard,  and  the  Lord 
has  taken  care  of  him.  What  a  mercy  it  was  that 
that  boy  was  converted  when  he  was  !  And  it  was 
in  consequence  of  his  mother's  prayers.  My  heart 
rejoices  that  I  can  say, '  God  is  love,'  that  He  loved 
me,  and  gave  Himself  for  me,  and  redeemed  my  soul 
from  death.  His  love  has  made  me  happy,  and  He 
has  indeed  been  a  God  of  love  to  raise  up  two  such 
sons  as  I  have.  My  father  had  five  sons,  and  they 
all  had  two  sons  each,  and  not  one  of  their  sons  can 
preach;  but  my  two  boys  can  speak  very  well,  and 
so  can  my  son's  two  boys,  God  bless  them  !  God 
bless  this  Church,  the  Orphanage,  the  College,  and  all 
the  institutions !  My  dear  son,  I  am  very  happy  to 
see  you  so  well  to-night ;  God  bless  you !  " 

C.  H.  Spurgeon :  "  I  may  say  that  I  did  not  origi- 
nally choose  him  as  my  father  ;  but  if  it  had  been  left 
to  my.  choice,  no  other  should  have  filled  his  place. 
May  God  bless  him  in  his  latter  days  !  And  now 
comes  my  brother.  If  there  is  a  good  man  on  the 
earth,  I  think  it  is  my  brother.  It  is  the  providence 
of  God,  and  an  instance  of  the  infinite  kindness  of 
God  to  me,  that  I  should  have  such  a  helper  as 
my  brother.  No  man  in  this  world  has  as  good 
a  brother  as  I  have,  or  if  he  has,  let  him  cry 
'  Hallelujah ! '" 


218  *  Life  and  Labors  of 

Pastor  James  A.  Spiirgeon :  ''  In  the  address  to  my 
brother,  we  have  not  said  half  what  we  should  like 
to  say,  and  it  would  be  quite  impossible  for  us  to  say 
to-night  all  that  is  in  our  hearts  concerning  him. 
What  can  I  possibly  say  about  him  as  a  brother  ? 
There  is  no  one  in  the  world  that  has  so  good  a 
brother  as  I  have.  Ever  since  I  can  remember  any- 
thing, I  can  remember  my  big  brother,  and  I  am  quite 
content  that  he  should  remain  my  big  brother  to  the 
end  of  our  days.  The  esteem  in  which  I  have  held 
him  has  only  been  equalled  by  the  love  I  bear  him. 
I  always  thought  him  wonderfully  wise,  but  I  never 
thought  him  so  much  so  as  I  do  to-day.  He  got  the 
start  of  me,  and  he  has  kept  it  all  along.  I  do  not 
know  that  I  have  gained  much  on  him,  though  I 
have  tried  to  run  him  hard.  I  have  always  seen  him 
well  in  front  in  every  good  word  and  work  for  the 
Master,  and  I  have  tried  to  keep  as  close  to  him  as 
I  could  all  my  life  long,  and  I  bless  God  that  we  are 
here  to-day  as  brothers.  Looking  back,  I  can  see 
that  both  of  us  have  been  children  of  many  prayers  ; 
and  all  honor  to  my  father  and  his  father,  to  my 
mother  and  to  our  good  grandmother,  for  we  came 
of  a  praying  stock,  and  we  came  of  a  pious  stock  for 
generations  past. 

"  I  think  it  was  in  the  year  1662  that  Job  Spurgeon 
sat  a  winter  through,  in  prison,  in  a  chair,  because  he 
would  not  go  to  the  steeple-house  to  worship.  He 
was  so  afflicted  with  rheumatism  (which  the  major 


Pastor  C.  H.  Sjnirgeon.  219 

part  of  our  family  inherits)  that  he  could  not  lie 
down  ;  so  that  my  dear  brother's  infirmities  are 
venerable  because  of  their  age.  With  other  things 
he  has  inherited  much  weakness  ;  but  it  was  gained 
in  the  Master's  service,  and  because  one  of  our 
ancestors  would  not  submit  to  worship  God  in  any 
other  way  than  that  which  he  thought  right.  I 
thank  God  to-night  for  being  my  brother's  coadjutor. 

"  I  consider  it  to  be  the  greatest  honor  God  could 
have  conferred  upon  me  to  make  me  co -partner  in  my 
brother's  work.  Anything  I  can  do  for  him  makes 
me  feel  that  I  am  multiplying  him ;  and  at  the  same 
time  I  feel  that  I  am  multiplying  myself  to  a  degree 
which  it  would  have  been  utterly  impossible  for  me 
to  have  done  if  I  had  not  been  linked  to  my  brother. 
Co-partnerships  do  not  always  answer,  but  be  it 
understood  that  our  co-partnership  certainly  has 
answered.  A  grander  leader  no  man  could  possibly 
desire.  You  who  follow  him  know  how  nobly  he 
leads  us  forward. 

"  Now,  be  it  known,  that  the  secret  of  my  brother's 
success,  so  far  as  I  have  solved  it,  is  prayer.  I  do 
not  know  any  man  more  pre-eminent  in  prayer  than 
my  brother,  and  he  who  prays  like  my  brother  prays 
may  look  for  a  like  success.  I  do  not  know  any  man 
who  is  more  profoundly  filled  with  faith  in  his  God, 
in  the  gospel  that  he  preaches,  and  in  the  comrades 
that  God  has  sent  to  his  side,  than  is  my  brother. 
I  do  not  know  any  man  who  is  more  full  of  singleness 


220  Life  and  Labors  of 

of  eye  in  connection  with  his  work  than  my  brother 
is.  It  is  said  that  no  man  is  a  hero  to  his  valet, 
because  his  valet  knows  too  much  about  him.  I 
think  I  know  my  brother  through  and  through,  and 
I  can  say  that  the  more  I  know  him  the  more  I  love 
and  esteem  him  for  his  loyalty  to  his  Lord.  I  feel,  in 
following  him,  that  I  am  not  following  him  only,  but 
following  the  Master. 

"  Then  I  think  I  shall  have  to  add  that  I  do  not 
know  anybody  who  works  harder  than  my  brother. 
I  saw  in  a  window  the  other  day  this  advertisement : 
'  All  Mr.  Spurgeon's  works  to  be  had  within.'  '  Ah  ! ' 
T  thought,  'they  may  get  all  my  brother's  printed 
works  within,  but  his  other  works  will  be  found 
everywhere'  else  in  earth  and  heaven  ; '  for  the  results 
of  his  labor  can  be  found  in  almost  any  part  of  the 
world,  and  this  not  by  accident,  but  by  the  blessing 
of  God  upon  what  is  downright  grinding  toil.  Only 
those  who  stand  by  my  brother's  side  know  what 
an  enormous  amount  of  work  he  is  obliged  to  get 
through  in  order  to  carry  out  the  Master's  service 
on  earth. 

"  I  must  confess  that  a  great  deal  of  my  brother's 
success  is  also  due  to  his  geniality.  Is  he  not  a  man 
among  men  ?  I  cannot  remember  all  the  genial  jokes 
that  he  has  made.  The  first  joke  I  ever  compre- 
hended was  made  by  my  grandfather,  who  had  been 
asked  how  much  he  weighed,  and  he  replied  that  '  if 
he  was   weighed  in  the  balance,   he  was   afraid   he 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  221 

should  be  found  wanting ;  but  if  he  was  weighed  in 
the  pulpit,  he  would  be  heavy  enough.'  That  was 
our  grandfather's  joke ;  but  I  do  not  know  how  many 
I  have  heard  from  my  brother,  and  there  has  been  a 
shrewdness  in  connection  with  them  that  often  re- 
minds me  of  our  old  grandfather.  It  is  just  that 
genial  spirit  of  my  good  brother  that  lightens  his  own 
and  others'  burdens ;  and  many  who  have  been  in 
despair  have  been  cheered  and  sent  forward  again  by 
having  the  brighter  side  of  the  picture  placed  before 
them  by  him.  How  many  of  us,  after  having  had  an 
hour's  talk  with  my  brother,  have  gone  away  refreshed 
and  radiant !  In  him  you  have  the  ingredients  of  a 
noble  man,  and  God  has  helped  him  to  consecrate 
them  to  His  service.  I  do  not  know  that  it  would  be 
kind  to  wish  him  another  fifty  years  of  life;  but 
as  long  as  he  lives  may  his  life  be  crowned  with  as 
many  blessings  as  have  been  vouchsafed  him  in  the 
fifty  years  that  have  gone  by  ! " 

C.  H.  Spurgeon :  "  Dear  friends,  I  am  trying  to 
consider  that  I  am  merely  representing  all  of  you 
who  have  done  the  work  here.  I  could  not  have 
achieved  Avhat  has  been  done  had  it  not  been  for 
a  willing,  cheerful,  constant,  persevering,  zealous 
people.  If  anybody  who  is  very  stiff  and  prim  comes 
here  for  a  time,  it  is  only  for  a  time.  He  generally 
says  that  he  does  not  like  you^  and  goes  off ;  but  the 
real  reason  is  that  there  is  nothing  in  him  that  is  at 
all  congruous  with  me,  and  away  he  goes.    But  here  is 


222  Life  and  Labors  of 

a  people  warm-hearted,  loving,  affectionate,  tender  — 
everything  that  is  good.  Of  course  we  might  all  be 
a  deal  better,  I  hope  we  shall  be  ;  but  I  do  not  know 
any  people  that  can  be  better  to  a  minister  than  you 
have  been  to  me  ;  and  I  desire,  while  my  brother  is 
using  this  soap,  which  is  manufactured  on  his  own 
premises,  and  is  perfectly  genuine  —  he  means  every 
word  he  says  —  I  desire  to  have  you  all  put  in  the 
tub  with  me,  and  then  I  shall  not  object  to  any 
quantity  of  lather.  I  think  it  is  a  very  blessed  thing 
for  us  to  have  with  us  without  a  break  three  genera- 
tions,—  my  father,  my  brother,  and  then  my  son." 

Pastor  Charles  Spurgeon  :  "  Dear  friends,  —  I  am 
here  to-night  to  speak  for  two,  for  we  are  as  one  — 
Charlie  and  Tommy.  I  am  here  to  say  what  no  one 
else  present  can  say,  —  this  is  my  father,  and  a  grand 
father  too. 

"  I  have  gone  into  my  father's  study  and  sat  at  his 
feet  to  learn,  many  a  time,  but  I  never  could  open 
my  mouth  before  him.  When  he  said,  '  Charlie,  what 
are  you  going  to  preach  from  ? '  I  wished  I  could  get 
to  the  other  side  of  the  door  as  quickly  as  possible, 
for  I  was  afraid,  if  I  told  him  the  text,  he  would  want 
to  know  what  the  divisions  were,  and  would  probably 
say  that  the  middle  one  was  wrong.  I  have  had  a 
profound  respect  for  him  on  these  matters  ;  neverthe- 
less I  have  always  tried  to  get  as  much  out  of  him  as 
possible,  because  I  knew  that  I  could  never  empty 
his  great  pitcher.     It  may  be  true  that  I  have  been 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spur g eon.  223 

some  joy  to  him  at  some  time,  but  it  is  with  wonder 
that  1  now  look  upon  him,  and  with  profound  aston- 
ishment shall  I  ever  contemplate  him,  because  he 
is  a  mighty  man  of  God.  I  am  devoutly  thankful 
that  I  can  glorify  God  with  you  to-night  in  celebrating 
my  father's  Jubilee." 

C.  H.  Spurgeon  :  "  Surely  you  have  had  enough  of 
us  all.  T  wish  now  to  call  upon  some  of  our  other 
children,  namely,  our  students,  to  speak.  There  are 
many  ministers  here  to-night  whom  I  should  have 
been  very  glad  to  ask  to  speak,  but  I  cannot  go 
beyond  the  programme.  Nothing  gives  me  greater 
pleasure  than  now  to  present  Mr.  Archibald  Brown 
to  you.  God  bless  him  for  the  sake  of  poor  outcast 
London,  and  for  all  that  tenderness  of  heart  which  he 
has  !  Though  his  sympathy  with  human  misery  some- 
times brings  him  very  low,  it  only  qualifies  him  the 
more  for  the  work  to  which  God  has  called  him." 

Pastor  Archibald  G.  Brown  :  "  It  has  always  been 
my  joy  and  delight  to  remember  that,  by  the  provi- 
dence of  God,  my  life  has  been  wonderfully  inter- 
woven with  that  of  your  pastor,  and  also  with  this 
church.  It  is  now  some  seven-and-twenty  years 
since,  as  a  lad,  I  used  to  look  forward  to  my  holi- 
days as  an  opportunity  of  running  up  to  hear  Mr. 
Spurgeon  preach  at  the  Surrey  Music  Hall.  I  remem- 
ber, as  if  it  were  only  yesterday,  the  sermon  that 
first  made  me  feel  I  was  a  sinner.  The  text  was, 
'  Compel  them  to  come  in.'     Twenty-three  years  ago 


224  Life  and  Labors  of 

to-morrow,  I  was  baptized  by  Mr.  Spurgeon  on  this 
lower  platform.  I  had  often  heard  him  preach  at 
the  Surrey  Music  Hall,  and  I  remember  that  it  was 
with  awe  and  wonderment  that  I  looked  at  him. 
Over  and  over  again  I  felt  that  I  would  just  give 
anything  if  he  could  only  know  me,  and  give  me  one 
shake  of  the  hand,  little  dreaming  that  we  should 
learn  to  know  each  other,  or  that  I  should  ever  be 
allowed  to  say  a  few  words  on  behalf  of  the  College 
at  his  Jubilee.  But  there  is  one  failure  about  the 
College,  —  one  thing  that  even  our  President  has 
failed  to  do ;  he  has  never  been  able  to  put  the 
stamp  of  his  own  genius  on  any  of  us :  there  is  no 
need  for  me  to  argue  that  point,  —  you  will  believe 
that  at  once.  Most  of  us  have  to  say  what  the 
Indian  did,  who,  when  he  was  asked  where  he  had 
been,  said,  '  Me  preach.'  '  What  did  they  pay  you  ? ' 
was  the  next  question,  and  he  said,  '  Sometimes  one 
shilling,  sometimes  two  shillings.'  '  Well,  that  is 
mighty  poor  pay.'  '  Yes,'  said  the  Indian,  '  but  it  is 
mighty  poor  preach.'  Mr.  Spurgeon  has  given  all  in 
the  College  a  passion  for  souls,  and  has  made  it 
their  ambition  to  speak  as  Paul  and  Barnabas  did  — 
'  They  so  spake  that  many  people  believed.'  Above 
all  things  we  desire  that  God  will  make  us  the  means 
of  winning  many  to  the  Saviour. 

"Last  week  I  was  in  the  infirmary  of  the  work- 
house, sitting  by  the  side  of  a  poor  dying  woman, 
who  had  been  brought  to  Christ  through  our  mission 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  225 

work.  Death  was  written  on  her  brow,  and  she  said, 
'  I  wish  you  would  give  us  a  look  in  on  Sunday 
sometimes.'  I  said,  '  Why  ? '  She  said,  '  Because  I 
should  like  you  to  give  us  a  jolly  good  sermon.'  I 
said, '  That  is  a  queer  expression ;  what  do  you  mean 
by  it  ? '  She  replied, '  A  jolly  good  sermon  is  one  that 
is  all  about  Jesus  Christ  —  one  that  is  full  of  Him.' 
Sermons  that  have  most  of  Jesus  Christ  in  them  are 
the  best ;  and,  under  God,  you,  dear  Mr.  Spurgeon, 
have  done  more  than  any  other  man  to  make  us  come 
to  that  conclusion." 

An  address  by  the  students  of  the  College  was  then 
presented  by  Mr.  H.  H.  Driver,  their  secretary ;  after 
which  an  address  was  presented  by  Mr.  S.  R.  Pearce, 
on  behalf  of  the  teachers,  parents,  and  scholars  of  the 
Tabernacle  Sunday-school. 

Mr.  W.  J.  Orsman  of  the  Golden  Lane  Mission, 
said  :  "  When  our  good  brother  Moody  spoke,  I  was 
reminded  of  what  occurred  years  ago  in  Virginia.  I 
had  been  preaching  somewhat  excitedly,  perhaps  a 
little  in  the  style  of  the  Salvation  Army.  I  told  an 
anecdote  of  yours,  and  mentioned  your  name.  An 
old  negress  in  the  congregation  became  interested, 
and  afterwards  said  to  me,  '  Do  you  know  Massa 
Spurgeon  ? '  '  Yes,'  I  said,  '  he  is  my  father ; '  at 
which  she  went  down  on  her  knees  to  me.  I  had  to 
explain  that  I  did  not  mean  he  was  my  father  ac- 
cording to  the  flesh,  but  my  spiritual  father.  Then 
the  poor  soul  told  me  how  she  had  read  his  sermons, 

15 


226  Life  and  Labors  of 

and  how  they  had  been  blessed  to  her.  I  think  it  is 
twenty  years  since  you,  sir,  came  down  to  Golden 
Lane  to  open  the  old  Tabernacle,  and  to  preach 
your  famous  sermon  to  costermongers.  The  Earl 
of  Shaftesbury  visited  us  afterwards,  and  since  then 
he  has  been  more  or  less  connected  with  our 
fraternity." 

Mr.  W.  L.  Lang,  F.  R.  G.  S.,  spoke  on  behalf  of  the 
Baptist  Ministers  of  France ;  and  after  an  address  by 
Mr.  William  Olney,  Jun.,  the  meeting  was  closed  with 
the  following  prayer  by  Mr.  Spurgeon  :  — 

"  0  God,  Thou  art  infinitely  good,  a  well  that 
has  overflowed  forever.  Blessed  be  Thy  name  !  We 
have  trusted  in  Thee,  and  we  are  not  confounded. 
Thy  servants  remember  dark  days,  and  times  of 
need,  and  hours  of  great  difficulty,  when  we  had 
nothing  to  stay  ourselves  upon  except  our  God,  and 
we  never  were  better  stayed.  Never  were  we  hap- 
pier, never  was  there  an  intenser  joy  in  our  spirit 
than  when  we  felt  we  were  out  of  our  depth,  and  yet 
could  not  drown,  but  could  safely  swim.  Lord,  we 
thank  Thee  for  teaching  us  to  trust  Thee,  for  causing 
us  to  cast  ourselves  upon  the  invisible  God,  to  rest 
in  Him  whose  voice  we  cannot  hear,  whose  person  we 
cannot  see,  but  who  is  nevertheless  most  certainly 
very  near  to  His  people.  The  Lord  bless  each  speaker 
to-night !  We  would  pray  for  each  one  individually  ; 
but  Thou  knowest  each  one.  The  Lord  bless  every 
member  of  this  church,  and  bless  every  person  who 


Pastor  0.  R.  Sjmrgeon.  227 

has  been  here  to-night  I  We  would  lift  our  hands  to 
Thee,  0  Lord,  to-night,  and  dedicate  ourselves  to 
Thee  anew  ;  for  Thee  to  live,  for  Thee  to  die,  if  need 
be.  Thine  are  we,  thou  Son  of  David,  and  oh,  that 
we  could  follow  Thee  whithersoever  Thou  goest,  and 
find  this  our  joy,  to  live  m  Thee,  to  live  with  Thee,  to 
live /or  Thee!  Oh,  send  a  blessing  now  upon  every 
head  !  Reward  these  generous  ones  a  thousand-fold, 
in  their  own  persons,  and  in  their  children,  for  Jesus 
Christ's  sake.     Amen." 

On  Thursday  evening^  June  19^7^,  1884,  the  second 
meeting  of  the  Jubilee  celebration  was  held  in  the 
Tabernacle.  It  was  presided  over  by  the  Earl  of 
Shaftesbury,  K.  G.,  and  commenced  with  prayer  by 
Mr.  Spurgeon.  After  a  list  of  the  various  societies 
represented  at  the  celebration,  and  of  congratulatory 
addresses,  letters,  and  telegrams  received,  had  been 
read  by  Mr.  J.  W.  Harrald,  Mr.  Spurgeon's  private 
secretary,  the  Earl  of  Shaftesbury  said :  — 

"  Many  of  you,  perhaps  all  of  you,  will  be  surprised 
to  see  me  here,  but  you  will  not  be  surprised  when  I 
explain  the  reason.  This  is  the  fiftieth  birthday  of 
our  admirable,  our  invaluable  friend,  Charles  Haddon 
Spurgeon.  It  is  right,  it  is  indispensable,  it  is 
necessary,  that  he  should  have  the  testimony  of  his 
congregation ;  and  he  has  it.  But  it  is  also  necessary, 
right,  and  equally  indispensable  that  he  should  have 
the  testimony  of  outsiders  like  myself,  to  show  what 


228  Life  and  Labors  of 

we  think  of  the  man,  and  what  we  think  of  his  career 
as  a  devoted  servant  of  our  blessed  Lord,  and  a  con- 
scientious and  faithful  laborer  for  the  advancement 
of  His  kingdom. 

"  If  I  had  not  been  told  that  I  must  be  very  brief,  I 
could  not  have  failed  to  enter  into  one  or  two  topics 
relating  to  his  character  and  conduct.  I  will  not 
touch  upon  his  literary  career,  but  I  will  begin  by 
showing  that  he  stands  as  a  marvel  before  you.  This 
day  he  completes  his  fiftieth  year,  and  thirty-one  of 
those  years  he  has  been  your  minister.  He  began  his 
ministry  in  New  Park  Street  Chapel  at  nineteen  years 
of  age,  and  you  see  him  now  as  he  began,  —  the  same 
true,  simple  man  that  he  was,  not  puffed  up  by  success, 
but  rather  humbled  by  it,  and  animated  to  go  on  still 
more  in  the  noble  career  that  God  in  His  merciful 
providence  marked  out  for  him  for  the  benefit  of  man- 
kind. I  cannot  but  call  your  attention  to  what  we 
outsiders  think,  though  your  attention  does  not  require 
to  be  so  directed. 

"  What  a  powerful  administrative  mind  our  friend 
possesses  is  shown  by  that  list  which  has  been  read 
of  the  various  societies  and  associations  constructed 
by  his  genius,  and  superintended  by  his  care.  These 
are  more  than  enough  to  occupy  the  minds  and  hearts 
of  some  fifty  ordinary  men.  Why,  it  seems  to  be  the 
whole  world  in  a  nutshell !  Mark  what  he  has  done 
by  his  missions,  and.  his  schools,  and  his  various  in- 
stitutions.    I  will  refer  principally  to   that  work  in 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spiirgeon.  229 

which  he  shines  the  brightest,  —  the  foundation  and 
government  of  his  College.  My  worthy  friend  has 
brought  forward  a  large  number  of  men  to  be  useful 
in  their  generation  by  preaching  the  Word  of  God  in 
all  its  simplicity  and  force,  —  men  adapted  to  all 
classes,  but  more  especially  to  that  large  mass  who 
need  instruction  in  the  elementary  principles  of  Chris- 
tian truth.  No  man  has  produced  a  greater  body  of 
disciples  capable  and  willing  to  carry  on  that  noble 
work.  I  speak  from  some  experience.  I  have  heard 
his  preachers  at  different  times  in  our  special  services 
at  theatres.  To  preach  for  that  large  class  of  people, 
untaught  before  in  the  truths  of  the  gospel,  strangers 
to  the  first  principles  of  religious  life,  requires  no 
ordinary  adaptation.  One  had  need  understand  the 
human  heart,  and  the  besetting  temptations  of  an 
enormous  aggregate  of  our  fellow-creatures.  Your 
evangelists  have  an  easy,  colloquial  mode  of  address- 
ing the  people.  They  imitate  the  example  of  our 
Lord.  They  are  picturesque  in  illustration  and  para- 
ble. That  is  the  way  to  go  to  the  hearts  of  the 
people.  Stilted  sentences,  long  periods,  high-sound- 
ing words,  and  labored  efforts  of  intellect  are  foreign 
to  the  taste  of  those  whom  we  aim  to  teach.  They 
like  a  religion  that  goes  straight  to  the  heart.  A  cosey 
religion  and  a  cosey  form  of  worship  suit  them. 
They  like  prayer  that  touches  their  present  case,  and 
tells  their  pressing  need.  When  their  instinct  feels 
that  you  have  gripped  their  weakness  on  earth,  they 


230  Life  and  Labors  of 

are  ready  to  believe  that  you  have  linked  them  on  to 
the  Omnipotence  in  heaven. 

"  I  remember  when  Mr.  Spurgeon  occupied  Exeter 
Hall  duriAg  the  construction  of  this  magnificent 
edifice.  A  nobler  edifice  I  never  saw.  Filled  as  it 
is  to-night,  I  confess  that  it  completely  overawes  me. 
In  his  early  days  he  adopted  a  mode  of  preaching 
which  was,  to  my  mind,  most  effective,  most  touch- 
ing, and  most  instructive.  It  was  that  of  taking  a 
chapter  of  the  Bible,  and  going  through  the  para- 
graphs and  verses  in  succession.  When  I  heard  him, 
I  invariably  said,  '  This  is  a  man  after  one's  own 
heart ;  preach  where  he  will,  he  cannot  fail  to  touch 
the  hearts,  to  arouse  the  intellects,  and  to  stir  to  the 
depths  the  consciences  of  those  that  listen  to  his 
exhortations.' 

"  In  this  long  course  of  success,  of  gratified  am- 
bition, and  homage  of  praise,  our  friend  remains  as 
simple  as  ever.  I  doubt  not  that,  if  any  one  says  to 
him,  when  he  descends  from  this  pulpit,  that  he  has 
preached  a  noble  discourse,  he  replies  with  his  lips, 
or  reflects  in  his  heart,  with  old  Baxter,  '  The  devil 
told  me  just  as  much.'  There  is  the  difference 
between  a  flash  preacher  and  a  true  preacher; 
between  those  who  tickle  the  ears,  and  those  who 
contend  for  the  faith  ;  between  those  who  keep  to- 
gether the  congregations  that  come  to  be  instructed 
and  to  be  comforted  with  the  words  which  the  Holy 
Spirit  dictates,  and  those  who  please  the  itching  ears 


Pastor  C.  H.   Spurgeon.  231 

of  indiscriminate  masses  who  come  in  succession,  but 
having  been  once  entertained,  feel  no  further  interest 
in  the  matter.  The  great  force  of  our  friend  consists 
in  the  doctrine  that  he  has  invariably  preached.  He 
has  ever  preached  '  Jesus  Christ,  and  Him  crucified,' 
as  the  mainstay  of  his  ministrations,  the  solution  of 
life's  problem,  the  help  of  every  one  in  this  world,  and 
the  hope  of  every  one  for  the  life  to  come.  This  it  is 
that  has  given  him  a  deep,  strong,  and  permanent 
power  over  his  congregation.  It  holds  together  such 
mighty  masses  as  I  now  see  before  me.  This  it  is 
which  brings  them  now,  with  heartfelt  reverence  and 
deep  gratitude,  to  give  thanks  to  Ahnighty  God  that 
this  good  man  has  been  allowed  to  live  to  the  present 
day,  and  which  leads  them  to  express  to  him  the 
gratitude  and  reverence  that  they  bear  to  him  for  his 
long  and  blessed  services.  I  think  that  a  great  num- 
ber of  preachers  in  the  present  day,  both  in  the 
Church  of  England  and  among  the  Nonconformist 
bodies,  follow  very  much  the  habit  of  the  chaplain 
mentioned  by  Pope.     He  said, 

'  He  never  mentions  hell  to  ears  polite.' 

I  would  to  God  they  would  mention  it  a  little  more ! 
They  are  very  fond  of  talking  of  the  love  of  our 
Lord,  but  they  say  very  little  of  the  issues  that 
await  the  impenitent;  and  these  are  the  persons  to 
whom  their  efforts  should  be  the  most  directed. 
When  good  Mr.  Reeve,  of  Portman  Chapel,  was  alive 
I  always  '  sat  under  his  ministry,'  as  the  phrase  is. 


232  Life  and  Labors  of 

One  day,  as  I  was  coming  across  the  Park,  after 
church,  1  met  a  friend  of  mine,  who  said,  '  Where 
have  you  been?'  I  said,  'As  usual,  to  hear  Mr. 
Reeve.'  He  said,  '  Oh,  I  hate  that  kind  of  fellow ! 
He  is  always  telling  you  about  your  sins.' 

"  I  heard  a  story,  a  year  or  two  ago,  about  this  ver}^ 
Tabernacle.  The  man  who  gave  this  history  about 
himself  said  :  '  I  and  my  wife  were  the  most  godless, 
wicked,  and  wretched  couple  upon  the  face  of  the 
earth.  We  cared  neither  for  God  nor  man.  We 
never  went  to  church  or  chapel.  One  evening  we 
were  passing  by  the  Tabernacle,  and  my  wife  said 
to  me, '  Let  us  go  in.'  I  said,  '  I  have  no  objection 
to  hear  the  nonsense  talked.'  They  came  in.  Our 
friend  was  in  his  best  vein,  and  you  know  what  his 
best  vein  is.  He  touched  upon  the  most  solemn  and 
serious  things.  When  the  man  and  his  wife  went 
home,  the  man  said,  '  Sukey,  did  you  hear  what  the 
preacher  said  ? '  She  said, '  I  did.  He  told  us  that 
we  should  go  to  hell  if  we  did  not  pray.'  '  Do 
you  ever  pray?'  'No,'  said  his  wife.  'Nor  I,'  said 
the  man  ;  '  and  I  do  not  know  how  to  do  it.'  '  Oh,' 
said  the  wife,  '  by  the  bye,  there  is  our  little  Mary 
upstairs ;  she  goes  to  Sunday-school,  she  will  know 
how  to  pray.'  Up  they  went.  They  woke  the  little 
child,  and  they  said  to  her,  '  Mary,  you  must  pray 
for  father  and  mother.'  And  the  little  girl  did  pray 
for  them ;  and  what  do  you  think  was  the  declara- 
tion of  the  man  ?     '  Why,   sir,'  said   he,  '  from   that 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  233 

hour  I  was  a  changed  man,  and  I  now  go  to  places 
of  worship  with  all  my  heart  and  soul.' 

"  Talkino'  of  the  men  that  have  been  raised  up  by 
our  friend  Spurgeon,  I  should  be  sorry  to  omit  the 
founder  of  the  Golden  Lane  Costermongers'  Mission, 
my  friend,  Mr.  Orsman.     The  institution  among  the 
costermongers  has  civilized,  and  in  some  instances, 
1   hope,  Christianized   the    costermongers.     1    derive 
benefit   from   it,  for  I  am  a  costermonger.     People 
sometimes  write   to  me,  'The  Earl  of  Shaftesbury, 
K.G.'     K.G.  means  'Knight  of   the   Garter,'    and   I 
always,  when  I  write  my  name  in  full,  add  '  and  C 
That  means  '  and  costermonger.'     I  am  proud  to  add 
that  to  my  address.     The  effect  of  the  work  among 
the   costermongers   has   been  to  diffuse   feelings   of 
humanity  towards  the  brute  creation.     The  constant 
observation  now  is  that  the  improvement  in  the  con- 
dition of  the  donkeys  is  entirely  due  to  my  friend, 
Mr.  Spurgeon,  through  Mr.  Orsman. 

"Well,  now,  I  think  that  I  have  talked  nearly 
enough.  I  think  of  Mr.  Spurgeon  as  a  man.  He  is 
one  of  the  most  admirable,  affable,  amiable  fellows 
I  ever  knew  in  the  whole  course  of  my  life.  I  do 
not  enlarge  upon  his  merits  as  a  pastor.  You  all 
know  the  love  he  exhibits  to  you,  and  you  all  know 
the  affection  that  you  bear  for  him  in  return.  You 
love  him,  not  only  for  his  private  character,  and  his 
public  achievements,  but  you  love  him  personally 
for  his  good  nature,  for  his  genial  humor,  for  his 


234  Life  and  Labors  of 

generous  kindness,  and  for  the  free  and  easy  manner 
in  which  he  associates  and  identifies  himself  with  you 
all.  Whatever  Mr.  Spurgeon  is  in  private  he  is  in 
the  pulpit,  and  what  he  is  in  the  pulpit  he  is  in 
private.  He  is  one  and  the  same  man  in  every 
aspect,  and  a  kinder,  better,  honester,  nobler  man 
never  existed  on  the  face  of  the  earth.  This  is  his 
Jubilee.  We  cannot  wish  that  he  should  live  to  see 
another  Jubilee,  but  this  we  may  wish  and  pray 
for,  —  that  the  rest  of  his  life  may  be  according  to 
its  beginning ;  that  he  may  go  on  increasing  in  ser- 
vice, in  depth  of  feeling,  and  in  power  of  exhibiting 
it,  in  winning  souls  to  the  Lord,  and  in  advancing 
the  heavenly  kingdom ;  and  may  the  whole  course  of 
his  life  on  earth  illustrate  those  blessed  words  in  the 
written  Word  of  God, '  The  path  of  the  just  is  as  the 
shining  light,  which  shineth  more  and  more  unto 
the  perfect  day.' " 

Canon  Basil  Wilberforce  (son  of  the  late  Bishop 
Wilberforce,  and  grandson  of  the  great  anti-slavery 
champion),  then  gave  an  earnest,  stirring  address. 
Rev.  J.  W.  Todd,  D.D.,  who  came  with  a  deputation 
from  the  London  Baptist  Association,  as  the  bearer 
of  a  congratulatory  address  from  tliat  body,  was  then 
introduced  to  the  meeting  by  the  Rev.  J.  P.  Chown, 
and  presented  the  address. 

Rev.  0.  P.  Gifford,  of  Warren  Avenue  Baptist 
Church,  Boston,  U.  S.,  presented  an  address  from  the 
Baptist  Ministers  of  Boston  and  its  vicinity. 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  235 

C.  H.  Spurgeon :  "  Anything  which  binds  our  two 
countries  into  a  vet  closer  union  must  be  a  blessing. 
We  are  truly  one.  I  believe  that  we  are  one  in 
the  excellences  of  the  race,  and  also  one  in  its  faults. 
I  have  two  sham  books  in  my  library,  which  I 
sometimes  show  to  friends.  One  is  '  Jonathan  on 
Exaggeration,'  and  the  volume  that  stands  side  by 
side  with  it  is '  John  Bull  on  Bragging.'  .  Both  of  us  do 
a  little  of  that.  I  have  no  doubt  that  New  England 
learned  it  from  Old  England.  I  do  thank  a  great 
number  of  American  friends  who  have  kindly  written 
to  me  at  this  time,  and  a  great  many  more  who  are 
always  writing  to  me,  telling  me  of  their  troubles 
and  asking  me  for  sympathy,  telling  me  of  their  joys 
whenever  they  get  any  good  from  the  sermons,  and 
blessing  God  for  it.  I  count  myself  right  happy 
to-day  to  have  so  many  letters  from  every  part  of 
the  world,  of  some  of  which  I  confess  I  cannot  read 
a  word,  but  I  know  Avhat  they  mean.  As  the 
Quakers  sometimes  '  take  the  sense  of  the  meeting ' 
without  formally  putting  the  resolution,  so  have  I 
taken  the  sense  of  Bohemian,  Swedish,  Dutch,  and 
other  letters  which  I  have  had  to-day,  which  I  am 
unable  to  read." 

Sir  William  McArthur,  M .  P.,  then  gave  an  animated 
address ;  and  he  was  followed  by  the  Rev.  Newman 
Hall,  LL.B.,  Rev.  W.  Williams,  of  Upton  Chapel,  and 
other  speakers. 

Mr.  T.  H.  Olney  then  presented  the  amount  of  the 


236  Life  and  Labors  of 

Spiirgeon  Jubilee  Fund,  exceeding  £4,500,  gathered 
from  a  large  variety  of  persons,  old  and  young,  in 
sums  from  a  penny  to  a  hundred  pounds. 

Mr.  Spurgeon :  "  Now  I  thank  everybody  who 
has  given  a  hundred  pounds,  and  everybody  who 
has  given  a  penny.  God  bless  you,  and  return  it 
to  you  in  every  w^ay !  One  of  our  brethren  told 
you  the  other  night  what  once  happened  to  me. 
I  had  been  preaching  in  a  country  place,  and  a 
good  woman  gave  me  five  shillings.  I  said  to 
her,  '  Well,  my  dear  friend,  I  do  not  want  your 
money.'  She  said,  '  But  you  must  take  it ;  I  give 
it  to  you  because  I  got  good  from  you.'  I  said, 
'  Shall  I  give  it  to  the  College  ? '  She  answered, 
'  I  don't  care  about  the  College.  I  care  about 
you.'  '  Then  I  will  give  it  to  the  Orphanage.' 
'No,'  she  said,  'you  take  it  yourself.'  I  said,  'You 
want  it  more  than  I  do.'  She  replied, '  Now,  do  you 
think  that  your  Lord  and  Master  would  have  talked 
like  that  to  the  woman  who  came  and  broke  the 
alabaster  box  over  Him?'  I  do  not  think  He  would,' 
She  added,  '  I  know  you  do  not  mean  to  be  unkind. 
I  worked  extra  to  earn  it,  and  give  it  to  you.'  I  told 
her  that  she  owed  me  nothing,  and  that  woman  owed 
the  Lord  everything,  and  asked  again,  '  What  am  I  to 
do  with  it?'  She  said,  '  Buy  anything  you  like  with 
it.  Only,  mind,  you  must  have  it  for  yourself.'  I 
mention  the  incident  because  it  is  much  in  that 
spirit  that  the  friends  have  given  now.  The  Lord  bless 
you  yet  more  and  more,  you  and  your  children ! " 


Pastor  C.  H.  ^^urgeon.  237 

Rev.  J.  P.  Chown  offered  prayer,  and  the  meeting 
was  closed  with  the  Doxology. 

This  was  not  the  first  great  testimonial  presented 
to  Mr.  Spm-geon.  Five  years  before,  namely,  on  the 
20th  May,  1879,  the  noble  smn  of  X6,248  18s.  5d. 
was  handed  to  him  as  a  gift  from  his  loving  people 
and  many  friends.  Nearly  half  of  this  sum—  £3,000 
—  were  the  net  proceeds  of  a  monster  bazaar.  Such  a 
result  was  the  more  remarkable,  because  the  pastor 
had  no  hand  in  the  multiplied  operations.  The 
bazaar  was  adopted  as  likely  to  give  an  opportunity 
to  the  very  poorest  to  contribute  something ;  and 
the  result  exceeded  all  expectations.  A  note  in  "  The 
Sword  and  the  Trowel "  for  February,  1879,  states : 

"  The  pastor  was  unable  to  be  present,  or  even  to 
leave  his  bed,  but  night  by  night  amazing  news  of 
success  comforted  him,  till  the  friends  were  able  to 
send  him  word  that  the,  gross  takings  were  £3,400. 
This  is  very  wonderful,  and  shows  what  a  willing 
people  can  and  will  accomplish." 

The  larger  half  of  the  gross  sum  was  contributed 
in  money.  In  looking  over  the  list  of  contributors, 
we  notice  only  a  few  names  connected  with  gifts 
which  required  three  figures  in  the  pounds'  column ; 
a  larger  number  required  two  figures;  but  the  bulk 
was  made  up  of  a  very  large  number  of  smaller,  and 
some  —  estimated  at  their  money  value  —  very  small 
contributions.  Manifestly,  the  2:)eople  —  we  mean  the 
great  crowd  of  loving  givers  —  gave  willingly. 

It  was  a  kind  of  open  secret  that  Mr.  Spurgeon 


238  Life  of  Pastor  C.  H.  Spur g eon. 

did  not  intend  to  appropriate  any  part  of  the  noble 
gift  to  himself  or  his  personal  uses. 

With  his  usual,  and  often  princeh',  generosity,  he 
gave  .£5,000  to  further  endow  the  Tabernacle  Alms- 
houses, and  the  remainder  he  apportioned  to  other 
benevolent  enterprises.  He  would  have  been  per- 
fectly justified  in  retaining  any  part  or  the  whole, 
as  most  men  would  have  done  ;  but  in  this  case  he 
felt,  as  his  whole  life  has  shown,  that  "  it  is  more 
blessed  to  give  than  to  receive."  He  is  not  rich,  and 
never  will  be,  except  in  good  works,  and  in  the  love 
of  his  people  and  many  friends,  in  the  deep  affection 
of  thousands  of  poor  and  needy  recipients  of  his 
bounty,  and  in  the  growing  esteem  of  the  whole 
of  Christendom.  Like  his  divine  Master,  "  He  hath 
dispersed  abroad  ;  he  hath  given  to  the  poor."  But 
he  gives  wisely,  and  in  business  matters  few  men  are 
more  acute.     May  his  righteousness  endure  forever ! 

In  a  brief  notice  of  the  presentation  of  the  testi- 
monial, in  "  The  Sword  and  the  Trowel  "  for  July, 
1879,  Mr.  Spurgeon  remarks  on  "  the  singularly  pleas- 
ing coincidence  that  at  the  church-meeting  held  "  two 
days  later  than  the  presentation  "no  less  than  thirty- 
seven  candidates  came  before  the  church,  and  con- 
fessed their  faith  in  Christ,  —  the  largest  number 
that  we  have  ever  received  at  one  church-meeting. 
This  was  the  more  remarkable  as  it  happened  en- 
tirely without  arrangement  on  the  part  of  the  pastor 
or  any  one  else.'* 


CHAPTER  XYII. 

MR.    SPURGEON   AS   A   PREACHER   AND   AUTHOR. 

AS  a  preacher,  Mr.  Spurgeon  is  unique.  No  man 
ever  wielded  so  wide  and  so  mighty  an  in- 
fluence in  his  own  day,  by  means  of  the  pulpit  and 
the  press,  as  the  pastor  of  the  Metropolitan  Taber- 
nacle has  done  for  more  than  a  third  of  a  century. 

The   weekly   issue   of    his   sermons    has   gone   on 
without  a  break  from  January,  1855  ;  and  the  close 
of   the   year  1891  witnessed  the    completion  of   the 
thirtj^-seventh    volume.      The    regular    sale    of    the 
weekly    numbers,    monthly    parts,    and    yearly    vol- 
umes has  been  well  maintained,  from   year  to  year, 
throughout  the  United  Kingdom.     Outside  the  British 
Isles   the  circulation  is  even  larger.     In  the  United 
States,  for  instance,  where  his   name   is   almost   as 
well  known,  and  certainly  as  much   honored,  as  in 
his  native  land,  the  sermons  are  regularly  published 
in  many  newspapers,  while  volumes    are    issued   by 
various    publishers.      The    sermons    are    frequently 
printed   in  full  in  "  The   Australasian "  newspaper, 
and  paid  for  as  advertisements.     Besides  this,  trans- 


240  Life  and  Labors  of 

lations  have  been  made  from  time  to  time  into  dif- 
ferent European,  Asiatic,  and  other  languages ;  so 
that  they  are  known  and  read  everywhere. 

Up  to  the  close  of  1891  the  number  of  separate  dis- 
courses issued  in  the  regular  weekly  series  was  two 
thousand  two  hundred  and  thirty-six.  In  addition 
to  this  number,  some  hundreds  have  been  published 
in  various  magazines  and  papers.  Mr.  Spurgeon's 
writings  are  almost  -  sufficient  to  form  a  library, 
and  already  amount  to  nearly  a  hundred  volumes. 
They  have  been  classified  as  "  Expository," 
"  Homiletical,"  ''Illustrative,"  "Devotional,"  "For 
Students,"  "  Historical,"  "  Popular,"  and  "  Extracts." 
Mr.  Spurgeon's  magazine,  "  The  Sword  and  the 
Trowel,"  has  now  completed  the  twenty -seventh  year 
of  its  publication. 

Of  all  these  works  "  The  Treasury  of  David  "  is  the 
most  gigantic.  It  occupied  considerable  portions  of 
Mr.  Spurgeon's  time  during  twenty  years ;  and  dur- 
ing the  whole  of  that  period  Mr.  J.  L.  Keys,  one  of 
Mr.  Spurgeon's  secretaries,  continued  to  search  the 
library  of  the  British  Museum,  and  other  libraries,  and 
to  cull  from  every  available  source  everything  worthy 
of  quotation  upon  the  Book  of  Psalms.  The  value 
of  this  work  to  ministers  is  attested  by  the  increasing- 
number  of  applications  made  to  Mrs.  Spurgeon  for 
grants  from  her  Book  Fund  of  these  highly  prized 
volumes  ;  while  its  acceptability  with  the  general 
religious  public  is  proved  by  the  fact  that,  although 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spiirgeon.  241 

the  volumes  are  published  at  eight  shillings  each, 
more  than  120,000  have  been  sold. 

No  commentary  on  a  single  book  of  the  Bible  has 
in  any  age  enjoyed  such  a  circulation. 

"  Among  all  orders  of  Christians,"  says  Mr.  Spur- 
geon,  "  the  '  Treasury  '  has  found  its  way,  unre- 
strained by  sectarian  prejudice,  —  another  proof  of 
the  unity  of  the  spiritual  life,  and  the  oneness  of 
the  food  upon  which  it  delights  to  feed." 

What  the  preparation  of  his  magnum  ojms  was  to 
Mr.  Spurgeon,  he  tells  us  in  his  preface  to  the  seventh 
and  last  volume  :  — 

"  A  tinge  of  sadness  is  in  my  spirit  as  I  quit '  The 
Treasury  of  David '  never  to  find  on  earth  a  richer 
storehouse,  though  the  whole  palace  of  Revelation  is 
open  to  me.  Blessed  have  been  the  days  spent  in 
meditation,  mourning,  hoping,  believing,  and  exult- 
ing with  David  !  Can  I  hope  to  spend  hours  more 
joyous  on  this  side  the  golden  gate  ?  Perhaps  not ; 
for  the  seasons  have  been  very  choice  in  which  the 
harp  of  the  great  poet  of  the  sanctuary  has  charmed 
my  ears.  Yet  the  training  which  has  come  of  the 
heavenly  contemplations  may  haply  go  far  to  create 
and  sustain  a  peaceful  spii'it  which  will  never  be 
without  its  own  happy  psalmody,  and  never  without 
aspirations  after  something  higher  than  it  yet  has 
known.  The  Book  of  Psalms  instructs  in  the  use  of 
wings  as  well  as  words;  it  sets  us  both  mounting  and 
singing.     Often  have  I  ceased  my  commenting  on  the 

16 


242  Life  and  Labors  of 

text,  that  I  might  rise  with  the  psalm,  and  gaze  on 
the  visions  of  God.  If  I  might  only  hope  that  these 
volumes  will  be  as  useful  to  other  hearts  in  the  read- 
ing as  to  mine  in  the  writing,  I  shall  be  well  re- 
warded by  the  prospect.  .  .  .  And  now  the  colos- 
sal work  is  done  !  To  God  be  all  glory  !  More  than 
twenty  years  have  glided  away  while  this  pleasant 
labor  has  been  in  the  doing  ;  but  the  wealth  of  mercy 
that  has  been  lavished  on  me  during  that  time,  my 
grateful  heart  is  unable  to  measure.  Surely  goodness 
and  mercy  have  followed  me  all  these  years,  and 
made  my  heart  sing  new  psalms  for  new  mercies. 
There  is  none  like  the  God  of  Jeshurun.  To  Him 
be  all  glory  for  ever  and  ever !  " 

The  full  amount  of  good  accomplished  by  Mr. 
Spurgeon's  sermons  will  never  be  known  on  earth. 
We  have  the  record  of  a  very  large  number  of  con- 
versions through  the  reading  of  them,  and  the  testi- 
mony of  many  who,  through  illness  or  distance  from 
a  place  of  worship,  can  seldom,  if  ever,  go  to  the 
house  of  God,  to  whom  Mr.  Spurgeon's  weekly  ser- 
mon is  a  Sabbath  feast,  in  the  strength  of  which 
they  go  through  the  week. 

Mr.  Thomas  Spurgeon  wrote  home  from  Australia 
to  his  father,  on  one  occasion,  saying :  — 

"  I  received  a  visit,  in  Geelong,  from  a  man  who 
produced  from  his  pocket  a  torn  and  discolored  copy 
of  '  The  Australasian,'  dated  June,  1868,  which  con- 
tained a  sermon  by  C.  H.   Spurgeon,  entitled  '  The 


Pastor  C.  H.   Spurgeon.  243 

Approachableness  of  Jesus'  (No.  809).  To  this  ser- 
mon my  visitor  attributed  his  conversion.  He  lived 
alone,  about  twenty  miles  from  Geelong,  and  had  not 
entered  a  place  of  worship  more  than  four  or  five 
times  in  twenty  years,  and  had  taken  to  drink  until 
delirium  tremens  seized  upon  him.  When  partially 
recovered,  with  not  a  human  being  near,  his  eye 
lighted  on  the  sermon  in  the  newspaper,  which 
brought  him  to  Jesus." 

We  remember  Pastor  J.  A.  Spurgeon  relating  to 
us,  some  years  ago,  the  fact  of  a  once  dissipated  char- 
acter having  been  converted  by  the  reading  of  one  of 
his  brother's  sermons.  If  memory  serves  us  well,  it 
was  one  of  the  sermons  on  "  The  Brazen  Serpent." 
Having  means  at  command,  and  wishing  to  show  his 
gratitude  to  God  in  some  practical  form,  he  resolved 
to  publish,  in  a  newspaper  circulating  in  drink-shops 
and  similar  places,  week  by  week,  a  sermon  by  the 
man  God  had  used  for  his  conversion.  As  it  was 
published  as  an  advertisement,  it  must  have  been  a 
costly  testimony  for  God ;  but  it  was,  in  a  sense,  his 
answer  to  the  question, ''  How  much  owest  thou  unto 
the  Lord  ?  "  Probably  it  was  a  sermon  so  published 
which  the  poor  crushed  and  trembling  drunkard  read. 
It  was  a  sermon  which  went  to  his  heart.  "  And,  sir," 
said  he  to  Mr.  T.  Spurgeon,  "  I  've  never  touched  the 
liquor  since.  I  can't  tell  you  how  grateful  I  am  to 
your  father  ;  but  I  thought  the  best  way  for  me  to  do 
honor  to  the  father  was  to  tell  his  son  of  the  bless- 


244  Life  and  Labors  of 

ing  the  printed  word  has  been  to  me."  The  paper 
had  been  lent  about  until  it  was  yellow  and  soiled, 
and  so  worn  that  it  would  hardly  hold  together. 

Concerning  these  sermons  in  newspapers,  Mr. 
Spurgeon  wrote,  sixteen  years  ago :  — 

"  By  my  permission,  the  sermons  were  printed  as 
advertisements  in  several  of  the  Australian  papers ; 
one  gentleman  spending,  week  by  week,  a  sum  which 
we  scarcely  dare  to  mention,  lest  it  should  not  be  be- 
lieved. By  this  means  they  were  read  far  away  in 
the  bush,  and  never  were  results  more  manifest;  for 
numbers  of  letters  were  received  in  answer  to  the  in- 
quiry as  to  whether  the  advertisements  should  be 
continued,  all  bearing  testimony  to  the  good  accom- 
plished by  their  being  inserted  in  the  newspapers.  A 
selection  of  these  letters  was  sent  to  me,  and  made 
my  heart  leap  for  joy,  for  they  detailed  conversions 
marvellous  indeed.  Besides  these,  many  epistles  of 
like  character  came  to  me,  showing  that  the  rough 
dwellers  in  the  wilds  were  glad  to  find  in  their  secu- 
lar papers  the  best  of  all  news,  the  story  of  pardon 
bought  with  blood." 

From  Massachusetts,  U.  S.  A.,  a  friend  writes  to 
Mr.  Spurgeon  :  "  A  gentleman  gave  three  volumes  of 
your  sermons  to  an  Irish  boy  ;  he  gave  them  to  a 
friend  of  mine,  and  this  friend  was  anxious  that  I 
should  read  them.  I  did  not  want  to  read  the  dry 
stuff,  but  she  pleaded  so  hard  that  I  took  one  to 
please  her.     I  had  read  only  a  few  lines  when  I  was 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  245 

convicted  of  sin ;  but  I  was  about  two  years  before  I 
received  the  assurance  of  forgiveness.  One  day,  as  I 
was  reading  your  sermon  on  '  The  Blood  '  (No.  228), 
hght  came ;  I  understood  what  faith  was,  and  I  be- 
lieved. I  do  all  the  good  I  can  with  your  sermons  by 
lending  them  to  others,  and  praying  the  Lord  to  bless 
them." 

An  interesting  reference  is  made  in  "  The  Sword 
and  the  Trowel "  for  January,  1880,  to  Dr.  Alexander 
Keith,  author  of  "  The  Evidence  of  Prophecy,"  and 
other  valuable  works :  "  He  is  now  confined  to  his 
bed,  from  which  he  knows  he  will  never  be  lifted  un- 
til he  is  carried  to  the  place  of  sepulture.  Not  a  mur- 
mur, however,  escapes  his  lips.  He  has  the  piety  of 
a  saint,  and  the  simplicity  of  a  child ;  but  you  can  see 
the  old  fire  burn  when  the  foundation  truths  are  as- 
sailed by  men  of  modern  thought.  His  chief  joy  on 
the  Sabbath,  dear  Mr.  Editor,  is  to  hear  one  of  your 
sermons.  The  reader  is  a  little  maid ;  and  he  avows 
that  he  has  the  best  preacher  and  hears  the  best  ser- 
mon in  the  town.  ...  I  am  commissioned  to  give 
you  his  grateful  thanks  for  the  rich  feast  you  give 
him.  He,  moreover,  wished  me  to  say  that,  while 
spending  the  winter  at  the  Bridge  of  Allan,  two  or 
three  years  ago,  your  sermons  were  read  by  invalids 
in  five  separate  rooms  of  the  same  establishment 
every    Sunday." 

Some  eleven  years  or  more  since,  "  The  Freeman," 
Baptist  newspaper,  said  in  one  of  its  issues :  — 


246  Life  and  Labors  of 

"  The  New  Year's  gift  of  the  proprietors  of  the 
little  French  monthly, '  L'Echo  de  la  Verite/  to  their 
subscribers,  is  a  translation  of  Mr.  Spurgeon's  fifteen 
hundredth  sermon,  '  The  Lifting  Up  of  the  Brazen 
Serpent '  (Num.  xxi.  9).  .  .  .  It  may  well  cheer 
the  heart  of  our  dear  brother  during  his  forced  re- 
treat [he  was  then  staying  at  Mentone],  to  know 
that  the  gospel,  through  the  instrumentality  of  these 
sermons,  is  ever  active,  and  that  he  is  truly  transmit- 
ting the  divine  influence  and  light  while  in  his  dark- 
ened chamber,  as  much  as  if  he  were  in  the  face  of 
day.  The  vitality  of  the  truth  concerning  the  work 
of  Christ  is  equalled  only  by  its  continual  novelty." 

A  Methodist  minister  in  Ireland  writes  thus  to  Mr. 
Spurgeon :  — 

"  Many  a  time  these  few  years  I  have  considered 
whether  you  know  that  you  are  preaching  in  unnum- 
bered pulpits  every  Lord's-day,  in  many  cases  word 
for  word  as  reported  in  your  volumes.  You  are 
aware,  I  suppose,  that  the  weekly  sermon  is  read  by 
two  thirds  of  the  Protestants  in  Ulster." 

The  deacons  of  a  church  in  South  Australia,  in 
sending  a  donation  for  the  Girls'  Orphanage  some 
years  ago,  wrote  :  — 

"  We  have  for  years  past  received  substantial  help 
from  your  written  sermons.  Christians  have  been 
helped  on  their  way,  and  others  have,  through  their 
instrumentality,  been  introduced  into  the  light  and 
liberty  of  the  gospel." 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  247 

A  sailor  friend  of  Mr.  Spurgeon  writes  him  thus 
from  Jamaica  :  — 

"  We  have  given  away  nearly  all  the  books  and  ser- 
mons that  we  had.  We  are  saving  a  few  for  the  poor 
negroes  at  the  other  ports  to  which  we  are  going. 
They  were  so  thankful  for  them  at  the  Falkland  Is- 
lands, and  enjoyed  reading  them  so  much.  In  one 
house  I  went  in,  I  saw  '  Morning  by  Morning '  and 
'  Evening  by  Evening; '  they  looked  quite  homely. to  me, 
as  we  use  them  every  morning  and  evening  on  board 
ship." 

The  little  island  of  Bryher,  one  of  the  Scilly  Isles, 
has  a  church  and  a  chapel  for  its  one  hundred  and 
twenty  inhabitants.  Service  is  held  in  the  church 
only  occasionally,  when  the  chapel  is  closed.  On 
other  Sundays  the  service  is  held  in  the  chapel,  and 
the  sexton,  who  is  also  parish  clerk,  reads  one  of  Mr. 
Spurgeon's  sermons,  and  they  sing  Wesley's  hymns. 

A  Christian  worker  in  Florida,  U.  S.  A.,  writes : 

"  Several  weeks  ago,  I  lay  ill  in  the  wilds  of 
Florida.  Weak  and  faint-hearted,  I  lay  pondering  on 
the  strange  providence  of  the  Master,  when  one  of 
your  sermons  was  placed  in  my  hands.  The  refresh- 
ing shower  revived  me,  and  gave  me  fresh  hope  and 
courage ;  and  I  rose  from  my  sick  couch  to  strive  still 
more  earnestly  to  gain  access  to  the  hearts  of  those 
by  whom  I  am  surrounded ;  and  to-day,  in  a  small 
class  that  I  have  formed  out  here  in  the  wilderness, 
the  Lord  made  His  presence  felt,  and  blessed  us  with 


248  Life  and  Labors  of 

an  awakening  that  I  have  never  seen  here  before,  and 
tears  of  repentance  were  shed  by  many." 

There  is  a  quaint  letter  from  Michigan ;  a  cheering 
testimony  from  Quebec ;  a  letter  from  a  Christian 
woman  in  Victoria,  Avho  tells  of  a  blessing  received 
many  years  ago  :  "  At  that  time  I  lost  a  darling  boy ; 
everything  seemed  dark,  and  nothing  brought  me  any 
comfort.  The  Word  of  God,  that  had  been  my  stay 
through  many  similar  trials,  was  all  darkness  to  me. 
A  friend  brought  me  one  of  your  sermons,  and  asked 
me  to  allow  her  to  read  it.  At  first  I  refused,  but  at 
last  consented.  I  forget  the  title,  but  it  was  that 
everything  is  ordered  by  God  —  no  chance.  I  felt 
all  the  time  my  friend  was  reading  afraid  to  breathe. 
I  could  only  say,  '  Go  on,  go  on.'  When  she  had 
finished  it,  I  leaped  from  my  couch,  and  said, '  All  is 
right ;  thank  God  my  dark  mind  is  all  light  again.' 
I  have  had  similar  trials  since,  and  many  other  trials, 
but  I  could  say  from  my  heart,  '  Thy  will  be  done ; 
it  is  all  right.'  At  this  time  my  husband  ordered 
your  sermons  monthly,  and  we  continue  to  do  so. 
Every  Sunday  evening  we  read  one  of  them  aloud  for 
all  to  hear,  and  afterwards  I  send  them  into  the  bush."' 

The  son  of  Kaffir  parents  writes  Mr.  Spurgeon  as 
follows  :  — 

"  Port  Elizabeth,  South  Africa. 

"  Dear  Sir,  —  I  don't  know  how  to  describe  my  joy  and  my 
feelings  in  this  present  moment.  We  never  did  see  each  other  face 
to  face,  but  still  there  is  something  between  you  and  me  which 
guided  me  to  make  these  few  lines  for  you.     One  day,  as  I  was 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  249 

going  to  my  daily  work,  I  met  a  friend  of  mine  in  the  street.  We 
spoke  about  the  Word  of  God,  and  he  asked  me  whether  I  had 
ever  seen  one  of  Mr.  Spurgeon's  books.  I  said,  '  What  Mr.  Spur- 
geon is  that?  One  of  the  Independent  ministers  in  London?' 
And  I  said,  '  No,  I  never  saw  such  a  book  in  my  life.'  He  said  he 
bought  it  froui  the  bookseller.  I  asked  the  name  of  the  book,  and 
he  said  it  was  *  The  Metropolitan  Tabernacle  Pulpit,'  and  I 
went  straight  to  the  shop,  and  bought  one.  I  have  read  a  good 
bit  of  it.  On  my  reading  it  I  arrived  on  a  place  where  Job  said, 
'  Though  he  slay  me,  yet  will  I  trust  in  Him.'  I  am  sure  I  can't 
tell  how  to  describe  the  goodness  you  have  done  to  us,  we  black 
people  of  South  Africa.  We  are  black  not  only  outside,  even  in- 
side ;  I  would  n't  mind  to  be  a  black  man  only  in  color.  It  is  a 
terrible  thing  to  be  a  black  man  from  the  soul  to  the  skin  ;  but 
still  I  am  very  glad  to  say  your  sermons  have  done  something 
good  to  me.  May  the  Lord  bless  your  efforts  and  prosper  your 
work  ?  May  it  please  Him  to  gain  many  sons  into  His  glory 
through  you  as  His  instrument,  not  only  in  London,  but  also  in 
Africa!" 

From  Denmark,  where  twelve  of  the  sermons  had 
been  translated  into  Danish,  Mr.  Spurgeon  received 
an  encouraging  testimony  of  the  good  that  had  been 
accomplished. 

Two  missionaries,  in  one  of  the  Grecian  Tsles, 
write  :  "  Your  sermons  are  to  us  like  rain  upon  a 
dry  land.  We  have  no  church  to  attend,  and  no 
friends   to  associate  with." 

One  of  Mr.  Spurgeon's  elders  communicates  to 
him  the  following  interesting  incident :  — 

"  An  Englishman  was  engaged  as  an  engineer  in  a 
South  American  city.  He  was  surrounded  with 
Portuguese,  and  seldom  saw  the  face  of  one  of  his 
own   countrymen.      Somehow   he   heard    that   there 


250  Life  and  Labors  of 

was  an  Englishman  confined  for  life  in  the  prison. 
Being  a  Christian  man  he  determined  to  call  on  him, 
and  speak  to  him  concerning  the  love  of  God  to 
sinners.  Having  obtained  permission  he  entered 
the  prison,  and  commenced  at  once  to  speak  through 
the  iron  grating  to  the  convict.  The  latter  told  him 
that,  a  few  years  before,  a  yoimg  Englishman  had 
called  upon  him  in  a  similar  manner,  and  left  behind 
some  English  novels,  hut  betiveen  the  leaves  of  one  of 
the  novels  there  was  a  sermon  which  had  been 
preached  in  Exeter  Hall  bv  C.  H.  Spurgeon  in  1856. 
The  convict  read  the  sermon.  It  was  upon  '  Salva- 
tion to  the  Uttermost'  (Xo.  84),  and  it  referred  to 
the  murderer,  AYilliam  Palmer,  then  under  sentence 
of  death.  The  words  entered  his  heart,  and  he 
immediately  knelt  down  in  his  cell,  and  cried  for 
pardon,  and  he  received  a  sense  of  forgiveness  on 
the  spot,  and  he  was  still  rejoicing  in  the  assurance 
that  God  for  Christ's  sake  had  forgiven  him.  He  said 
he  had  no  hope  of  liberty  in  this  life,  but  he  rejoiced 
in  the  glorious  hope  set  before  him  in  the  gospel." 

Mr.  Spurgeon  possesses  one  of  his  own  sermons 
around  which  gathers  a  peculiar  interest.  It  is 
yellow,  travel-worn,  and  discolored  by  exposure  to 
the  sun.  It  is  No.  408,  vol.  ^^ii.,  entitled,  "  Accidents, 
not  Punishments."  It  was  carried  by  Dr.  Livingstone 
in  his  last  journey  to  Africa.  Across  the  top  is 
written  — 

"  Very  good.  — J).  L." 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  251 

It  was  found  in  one  of  his  boxes  after  his  death,  and 
was  sent  b}'  his  daughter,  Mrs.  Bruce,  to  Mr.  Spurgeon. 

Sermon  No.  1,500,  on  "  Instant  Salvation  ;  or. 
Lifting  up  the  Brazen  Serpent,"  has  been  made  a 
great  blessing  to  many.  One  given  to  a  gentleman 
on  the  Parade  at  St.  Leonards  was  the  means  of  his 
salvation. 

A  minister  relates  that,  when  in  Scotland,  he  got 
lost  in  a  certain  glen.  The  people  there  knew 
nothing  about  Lord  Beaconsfield  and  Mr.  Gladstone, 
but  at  the  name  of  Spurgeon  they  woke  up.  They 
read  his  sermons,  as  those  shown  to  the  minister 
plainly  proved.  There  being  no  kirk  in  the  glen, 
they  met  together,  and  read  one  of  Mr.  Spurgeon's 
sermons.  One  old  man  said  he  "  wad  shoost  gang 
on  his  twa  bonds  and  knees  a'  the  way  tae  Glesca, 
tae  get  a   sicht  o'  him." 

The  following  cheering  letter,  addressed  to  Mr. 
Spurgeon,  appeared  in  "The  Sword  and  the  Trowel" 
for  October,  1891:  "I  want  to  express  my  thanks 
for  the  good  I  have  received  from  your  '  Morning 
by  Morning,'  and  also  your  sermons.  A  few  days 
back  I  went  to  see  a  poor  man,  who  has  been  laid 
by  for  eleven  weeks.  I  found  him  much  depressed, 
as  he  has  a  family  dependent  upon  him.  I  read  him 
your  sermon,  '  My  Times  are  in  Thy  Hands'  (No. 
2,205),  and  you  would  have  been  glad  to  see  how 
much  it  comforted  him,  and  seemed  to  help  him." 

The  same  magazine  contains  the  following"  Note:" 


252  Life  and  Labors  of 

"A  Scotch  friend  Trrites  to  tell  us  that,  when  he 
was  sending  some  flowers  to  an  invalid,  he  put  in 
a  note,  and  enclosed  an  illustrated  leaflet, '  He  Heal- 
eth  all  our  Diseases,'  extracted  from  Mr.  Spurgeon's 
sermons,  and  published  by  the  Drummond  Tract 
Society.  The  writer  then  goes  on  to  say :  '  The 
lady  said  to  the  boy  who  carried  the  flowers,  "  Tell 

Mr. that   this  was   just  what   I  was  wanting." 

As  soon  as  I  heard  this,  I  sent  another  leaflet  (the 
last  I  had),  "  God  is  our  Refuge,"  and  wrote  another 
letter,  saying  that  it  was  never  too  soon,  and,  thank 
God,  never  too  late,  for  the  soul  to  think  upon 
eternal  things ;  and  drew  her  attention  to  the  fact 
that  the  leaflets  contained  the  words  of  one  who  had 
been  on  the  border-land  of  eternity,  ay,  at  the  very 
gate  of  heaven.  .  .  .  Dear  Spurgeon,  your  leaflet 
resulted  in  her  entrance  into  the  kingdom,  and  she 
had  a  happy  death.  Just  about  a  quarter  of  an  hour 
before  she  died  she  called  her  son  and  daughter  to 
her  bedside,  and  bade  them  give  their  hearts  to  the 
Saviour,  and  asked  them  to  meet  her  in  heaven.'  " 

Of  translations,  the  Dutch  have  exceeded  all 
besides,  but  many  volumes  have  been  published  in 
German.  Volumes  have  appeared  in  Welsh,  Italian, 
French,  and  Swedish.  A  handsome  edition  of  four 
volumes  has  been  largely  circulated  in  Sweden,  and 
the  translator  has  informed  Mr.  Spurgeon  of  the 
conversion  of  some  of  noble  and  even  of  royal  birth 
through    their    perusal.      Sermons   have    also   been 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  253 

published  in  Spanish,  Gaelic,  Russ,  Lettish,  Servian, 
Hungarian,  Maori,  Arabic,  Telugu,  Urdu,  and  many 
other  tongues.  An  edition  has  also  been  published 
in  Karen,  for  the  many  thousands  of  Karen  converts. 

In  "  The  Sword  and  the  Trowel "  for  October,  1891, 
are  the  following  "  Notes  "  concerning  translations  of 
Mr.  Spurgeon's  works  :  — 

''  Permission  has  been  recently  given  for  the 
translation  of  '  All  of  Grace '  into  the  Urdu  or 
Hindustani  language,  for  the  benefit  of  the  native 
church  in  the  Punjab,  India;  w^hile  a  Presbyterian 
missionary  in  Allahabad  writes :  '  I  have  four  vol- 
umes of  your  sermons,  which  I  have  let  Hindus 
and  Christians  read.  I  have  had  some  of  them 
translated  into  Hindustani,  and  published  in  a 
vernacular  paper  of  which  I  am  editor.  That  which 
I  delight  in,  in  all  your  sermons,  is  the  holding  up 
of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  especially  in  holding  Him 
up  as  the  Lamb  of  God.' 

''  We  are  also  informed  by  '  The  Baptist '  that 
'  Some  fifty  or  sixty  of  Mr.  Spurgeon's  sermons  are  in 
course  of  being  translated  into  Urdu,  by  a  native  Chris- 
tian catechist  of  the  Punjab,  with  a  view  to  publica- 
tion in  that  quasi-universal  language  of  India.' 

"  A  friend  writes  to  Mrs.  Spurgeon  :  '  A  Nestorian 
pastor,  from  Ooroomiah,  showed  me  a  paper  pub- 
lished once  a  month  by  the  American  Presbyterians 
in  Ooroomiah,  in  modern  Syria^c.  Among  other 
articles  are   sermons   of   Mr.    Spurgeon's    translated 


254  Life  ayid  Labors  of 

into  Syriac.  Pastor  H.  read  part  of  one  to  me,  from 
Isaiah  xli.  1  ("  Solemn  Pleadings  for  Revival,"  No. 
1,215),  and  interpreted  it  into  English.  I  got 
blessing  and  refreshment  to  my  own  soul  as  he 
did  so.  He  had  another  paper  with  a  sermon  in 
it,  from  Prov.  xxiii.  17,  18  ("  All  the  Day  Long," 
No.  2,150).  This,  he  said,  he  read  over  and  over 
again,  and  got  much  blessing  to  his  soul  from  it. 
So,  praise  God,  while  Mr.  Spurgeon  is  lying  sick 
at  Norwood,  the  Lord  Jesus  is  using  his  words 
to  strengthen  and  bless  the  hearts  of  the  Nestorians 
far  away  among  the  mountains  of  Persia ! '  " 

The  sermons  have  been  like  a  river,  small  in  their 
beginning,  but  widening  and  deepening  in  their 
onward  flow,  till  their  waters  have  made  glad 
multitudes  in  the  cities,  towns,  villages,  and  hamlets 
in  our  own  and  other  lands. 

During  the  Conference  of  the  Pastors'  College 
Evangelical  Association,  in  1889,  one  of  the  brethren 
(Dr.  Usher,  of  Belfast)  prayed  very  earnestly  for 
the  conversion  of  the  children  of  the  ministers  who 
were  present.  Mr.  Spurgeon  was  greatly  moved 
by  the  prayer,  and  offered  to  write  a  letter  to 
the  children  of  any  minister  who  would  forward 
the  names  and  addresses  of  his  children.  Two  let- 
ters were  prepared,  one  for  the  younger  children, 
and  the  other  for  the  older  sons  and  daughters  of 
ministers.  A  copy  of  the  latter  is  given  on  the  next 
page:  — 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spur g eon.  255 

Westwood,  Norwood. 
0  Lord^  Mess  this  letter  I 

My  DEAR ,  —  I  was,  a  little  while  ago,  at  a  meet- 
ing for  prayer,  where  a  large  number  of  ministers 
were  gathered  together.  The  subject  of  prayer  was 
*'  Our  Children."  It  soon  brought  tears  to  my  eyes  to 
hear  those  good  fathers  pleading  with  God  for  their 
sons  and  daughters.  As  they  went  on  entreating  the 
Lord  to  save  their  families,  my  heart  seemed  ready 
to  burst  with  strong  desire  that  it  might  be  even  so. 
Then  I  thought,  I  will  write  to  those  sons  and  daugh- 
ters, and  remind  them  of  their  parents'  prayers. 

Dear ,  you    are   highly   privileged    in    having 

parents  who  pray  for  you.  Your  name  is  known  in 
the  courts  of  heaven.  Your  case  has  been  laid  be- 
fore the  throne  of  God.  Do  you  pray  for  yourself? 
If  you  do  not  do  so,  why  not  ?  If  other  people  value 
your  soul,  can  it  be  right  for  you  to  neglect  it  ?  All 
the  entreaties  and  wrestlings  of  your  father  will  avail 
you  nothing  if  you  never  seek  the  Lord  yourself.  You 
know  this. 

You  do  not  intend  to  cause  grief  to  dear  mother 
and  father;  but  you  do.  So  long  as  you  are  not 
saved,  they  can  never  rest.  However  obedient  and 
sweet  and  kind  you  may  be,  they  will  never  feel 
happy  about  you  until  you  believe  in  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  and  so  find  everlasting  salvation. 

Think  of  this.  Remember  how  much  you  have 
already  sinned,  and  none  can  wash  you  but  Jesus. 


256  Life  of  Pasto7'   C.  H.  Sjourgeon, 

When  you  grow  up  you  may  become  very  sinful, 
and  none  can  change  your  nature  and  make  you  holy 
but  the  Lord  Jesus,  through  His  Spirit. 

You  need  ^Yhat  father  and  mother  seek  for  you, 
and  you  need  it  noiv.  Why  not  seek  it  at  once  ?  I 
heard  a  father  pray,  "  Lord,  save  our  children,  and 
save  them  young P  It  is  never  too  soon  to  be  safe  ; 
never  too  soon  to  be  happy ;  never  too  soon  to  be 
holy ;  Jesus  loves  to  receive  the  very  young  ones. 

You  cannot  save  yourself,  but  the  great  Lord 
Jesus  can  save  you.  Ask  Him  to  do  it.  "  He  that 
asketh,  receiveth."  Then  trust  in  Jesus  to  save  you. 
He  can  do  it,  for  He  died  and  rose  again,  that  "  who- 
soever believeth  in  Him  might  not  perish,  but  have 
everlasting  life."  Come  and  tell  Jesus  you  have 
sinned ;  seek  forgiveness  ;  trust  in  Him  for  it,  and  be 
sure  that  you  are  saved. 

Then  imitate  our  Lord.  Be  at  home  what  Jesus 
was  at  ^^azareth;  yours  will  be  a  happy  home,  and 
your  dear  father  and  mother  will  feel  that  the  dear- 
est wish  of  their  hearts  has  been  granted  them. 

I  pray  you  to  think  of  heaven  and  hell ;  for  in  one  of 
those  places  you  will  live  forever.    Meet  me  in  heaven! 
Meet  me  at  once  at  the  mercy-seat.     Run  upstairs, 
and  pray  to  the  great  Father,  through  Jesus  Christ. 
Yours  very  lovingly, 

C.  H.  Spurgeon. 

Mr.  Spurgeon  has  heard  of  many  boys  and  girls 
led  to  the  Saviour  by  these  letters. 


CHAPTER  XYIIT. 

MR.    SPURGEON   AS   A    HYMN-WRITER. 

IN  the  early  years  of  his  ministry  Mr.  Spurgeon 
sometimes  indulged  in  the  making  of  verses; 
and  even  before  this  he  gave  proof  of  ability,  if  not 
of  genius,  in  this  field.  Space  will  not  allow  us  to  be 
very  copious  in  our  quotations  ;  but  a  few  specimens 
may  be  given.  We  give  first  a  copy  of  verses, 
written  at  the  age  of  eighteen,  on  the  Redeemer's 
name  :  — 

"IMMANUEL." 

"When  once  I  mourned  a  load  of  sin  ; 
When  conscience  felt  a  wound  witliin  ; 
•  When  all  my  works  Avere  thrown  away  ; 

When  on  my  knees  I  knelt  to  pray  — 

Then,  blissful  hour !  —  remembered  well  — ■ 
I  learned  Thy  love,  Immauuel. 

When  storms  of  sorrow  toss  my  soul 
When  waves  of  care  around  me  roll ; 
When  comforts  sink,  when  joys  shall  flee ; 
When  hopeless  griefs  shall  gape  for  me, — 

One  word  the  tempest's  rage  shall  quell ; 

That  word,  Thy  name  —  Immanuel. 
17 


258  Life  and  Labors  of 

When  for  the  truth  I  suffer  shame ; 
When  foes  pour  scandal  on  my  name  ; 
When  cruel  taunts  and  jeers  abound ; 
When  "  Bulls  of  Bashau  "  gird  me  round,  — 

Secure  -within  Thy  power  I  '11  dwell ; 

That  tower,  Thy  grace  —  Immanuel. 

When  hell,  enraged,  lifts  up  her  roar  ; 
When  Satan  stops  my  patli  before  ; 
When  fiends  rejoice,  and  wait  my  end  ; 
When  legioned  hosts  their  arrows  send,  — 

Fear  not,  my  soul,  but  hurl  at  hell 

Thy  battle-cry  —  Immanuel. 

When  down  the  hill  of  life  I  go  ; 
When  o'er  my  feet  death's  waters  flow  ; 
When  in  the  deepening  flood  I  sink ; 
When  friends  stand  weeping  on  the  brink, — 

I  '11  mingle  with  my  last  farewell 

Thy  lovely  name  —  Immanuel. 

When  tears  are  banished  from  mine  eye  •, 
When  fairer  worlds  than  these  are  nigh  ; 
When  heaven  shall  fill  my  ravished  sight ; 
When  I  shall  bathe  in  sweet  delight ; 

One  joy  all  joys  shall  far  excel,  — 

To  see  Thy  face,  Immanuel. 

In  1866  Mr.  Spurgeon  published  ''  A  Collection  of 
Psalms  and  Hj^mns,  for  Public,  Social,  and  Private 
Worship,"  to  which  he  gave  the  title  of  "  Our  Own 
Hymn-book."  In  this  collection  there  are  about  a 
dozen  psalms,  and  as  many  hymns,  from  the  com- 
piler's own  pen.  In  the  preface  he  makes  the 
following  all  too  modest  reference  to  his  own  com- 
positions :  — 

"  The  editor  has  inserted,  with  great  diffidence,  a  very  few  of 
his  own  composition,  chiefly  among  the  Psalms  ;  and  his  only 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spiirgeon.  259 

apology  for  so  doing  is  the  fact  that  of  certain  difficult  Psalms 
he  could  find  no  version  at  all  fitted  for  singing,  and  was  there- 
fore driven  to  turn  them  into  verse  himself.  As  these  ori^rinal 
compositions  are  but  few,  it  is  hoped  that  they  will  not  prejudice 
the  ordinary  reader  against  the  rest  of  the  collection ;  and  possibly 
one  or  two  of  them  may  gratify  the  generous  judgment  of  our 
friends." 

We  give  two  of  his  paraphrases  of  the  Psalms  and 
two  of  his  hymns  :  — 

PSALM  XV. 

Lord,  I  would  dwell  with  Thee, 

On  Thy  most  lioly  hill : 
Oh,  shed  Thy  grace  abroad  in  me, 

To  mould  me  to  thy  will ! 

Thy  gate  of  pearl  stands  wide 

For  those  who  walk  upright ; 
But  those  who  basely  turn  aside 

Thou  chasest  from  Thy  sight. 

Oh,  tame  my  tongue  to  peace, 

And  tune  my  heart  to  love ; 
From  all  reproaches  may  I  cease. 

Made  harmless  as  a  dove ! 

The  vile,  though  proudly  great, 
No  flatterer  find  in  me ; 
•  I  count  Thy  saints  of  poor  estate 

Far  nobler  company. 

Faithful,  but  meekly  kind  ; 

Gentle,  yet  boldly  true ; 
I  would  possess  the  perfect  mind 

Which  in  my  Lord  I  view. 

But,  Lord,  these  graces  all 

Thy  Spirit's  work  must  be  : 
To  Thee,  through  Jesu's  blood  I  call, 

Create  them  all  in  me. 


260  Life  and  Labors  of 

PSALM  LXXXIII. 

0  God,  be  Thou  no  longer  still, 

Thy  foes  are  leagued  against  Thy  law. 

Make  bare  Thine  arm  on  Zion's  hill, 
Great  Captain  of  our  Holy  War  ! 

As  Araalek  and  Ishmael 

Had  war  forever  with  Thy  seed, 

So  all  the  Hosts  of  Rome  and  hell 
Against  Thy  Son  their  armies  lead. 

Though  they  're  agreed  in  nought  beside. 
Against  Thy  truth  they  all  unite  ; 

They  rave  against  the  Crucified, 
And  hate  the  gospel's  growing  might. 

By  Kishon's  brook  all  Jabin's  band. 
At  Thy  rebuke  were  swept  away ; 

O  Lord,  display  Thy  mighty  hand, 
A  single  stroke  shall  win  the  day. 

Come,  rushing  wind,  the  stubble  chase  ! 

Come,  sacred  fire,  the  forest  burn  ! 
Come,  Lord,  with  all  Thy  conquering  grace, 

Eebellious  hearts  to  Jesus  turn  ! 

That  men  may  know  at  once  that  Thou, 
Jehovah,  lovest  truth  right  Avell ; 

And  that  Thy  church  shall  never  bow 
Before  the  boastful  gates  of  hell. 

EAELY  MORNIXG  PRAYER-MEETIXG. 

Sweetly  the  holy  hymn 
Breaks  on  the  morning  air ; 

Before  the  world  with  smoke  is  dim, 
We  meet  to  offer  prayer. 

While  flowers  are  wet  with  dews. 
Dew  of  our  souls  descend  ; 

Ere  yet  the  sun  the  day  renews, 
O  Lord,  Thy  Spirit  send  ! 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  261 

Upon  the  battle-field, 

Before  the  fight  begins, 
We  seek,  0  Lord,  Thy  sheltering  shield, 

To  guard  us  from  our  sins  ! 

Ere  yet  our  vessel  sails 

Upon  the  stream  of  day. 
We  plead,  0  Lord,  for  heavenly  gales 

To  speed  us  on  our  way  ! 

On  the  lone  mountain  side, 

Before  the  morning's  light, 
The  Man  of  Sorrows  wept  and  cried, 

And  rose  refresh'd  with  might. 

Oh,  hear  us  then,  for  we 

Are  very  weak  and  frail. 
We  make  the  Saviour's  name  our  plea, 

And  surely  must  prevail ! 


JESU'S  PRESENCE  DELIGHTFUL 

Amidst  us  our  Beloved  stands, 
And  bids  us  view  His  pierced  hands ; 
Points  to  His  Avounded  feet  and  side. 
Blest  emblems  of  the  Crucified. 

What  food  luxurious  loads  the  board, 
When  at  His  table  sits  the  Lord ! 
The  wine  how  rich,  the  bread  how  sweet. 
When  Jesus  deigns  the  guests  to  meet ! 

If  now  with  eyes  defiled  and  dim. 
We  see  the  signs  but  see  not  Him, 
Oh,  may  His  love  the  scales  displace, 
And  bid  us  see  Him  face  to  face  ! 

Our  former  transports  we  recount, 
When  with  Him  in  the  Holy  mount, 
These  cause  our  souls  to  thirst  anew, 
His  marr'd  but  lovelv  face  to  view. 


262  Life  and  Labors  of 

Tliou  glorious  Bridegroom  of  our  hearts, 
Thy  present  smile  a  heaven  imparts : 
Oh,  lift  the  veil,  if  veil  there  be, 
Let  every  saint  Thy  beauties  see  ! 


FLY  TO  JESUS 

is  the  title  of  another  good  hymn  of  Mr.  Spurgeon's, 
which  is  not  in  "  Our  Own  Hymn  Book." 

Guilty  sinner,  fly  to  Jesus  ; 

He  alone  can  purge  our  guilt ; 
From  each  deadly  sin  He  frees  us, 

'T  was  for  this  His  blood  was  spilt. 
Come,  and  welcome ; 

Come  this  moment,  if  thou  wilt. 

Empty  sinner,  ha.ste  to  Jesus, 

For  in  Him  all  fulness  dwells. 
And  His  inmost  soul  it  pleases 

When  a  longing  soul  He  fills. 
Be  not  backward ; 

He  invites  whoever  wills. 

Hopeless  sinner,  look  to  Jesus, 

In  His  death  thy  ransom  see  ; 
From  despair  His  word  releases, 

Trust  in  Him,  and  fear  shall  flee. 
High  as  heaven 

Are  his  thoughts  of  love  to  thee. 

"Worst  of  sinners,  come  to  Jesus, 
He  has  said  He  '11  cast  out  none ; 

Come  with  all  thy  foul  diseases, 
He  can  cure  them  every  one ; 

And,  with  wonder, 
Thou  shalt  sing  what  grace  has  done. 

At  various  times  Mr.  Spurgeon  has  written  hymns 
that  have  been  published  in  "  The  Sword  and  the 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spur g eon.  263 

Trowel."     We  give  two  of  them  as  specimens  of  the 
variety  of  styles  in  which  he  writes. 

A  BATTLE   HYMN. 

Forth  to  the  battle' rides  our  King, 

He  climbs  His  conquering  car ; 
He  fits  His  arrows  to  the  string, 

And  hurls  His  bolts  afar. 

Convictions  pierce  the  stoutest  hearts. 

They  smart,  they  bleed,  they  die  ; 
Slain  by  Immanuel's  well-aimed  darts, 

In  helpless  heaps  they  lie. 

Behold,  He  bares  His  two-edged  sword, 

And  deals  almighty  blows  ; 
His  all-revealing,  killing  "Word 

'Twixt  joints  and  marrow  goes. 

Who  can  resist  Him  in  the  fight '? 

He  cuts  through  coats  of  mail. 
Before  the  terror  of  His  might 

The  hearts  of  rebels  fail. 

Anon,  arrayed  in  robes  of  grace, 

He  rides  the  trampled  plain. 
With  pity  beaming  in  His  face, 

And  mercy  in  His  train. 

Mighty  to  save  He  now  appears, 

Mighty  to  raise  the  dead. 
Mighty  to  stanch  the  bleeding  wound. 

And  lift  the  fallen  head. 

Victor  alike  in  love  and  arms. 

Myriads  around  Him  bend  ; 
Each  captive  owns  His  matchless  charms, 

Each  foe  becomes  His  friend. 


264  Life  and  Labors  of 

They  crown  Him  on  the  battle-field. 
They  press  to  kiss  His  feet ; 

Their  hands,  their  hearts,  their  all  they  yield 
His  conquest  is  complete. 

None  love  Him  more  than  those  He  slew ; 

His  love  their  hate  has  slain  ; 
Henceforth  their  souls  are  all  on  fire 

To  spread  His  gentle  reign. 


THE  FOUNTAIN  OF  PRAISE. 

All  my  soul  was  dry  and  dead 
Till  I  learned  that  Jesus  bled  ; 
Bled  and  suffer'd  in  my  place, 
Bearing  sin  in  matchless  grace. 

Then  a  drop  of  heavenly  love 
Fell  upon  me  from  above, 
And  by  secret,  mystic  art 
Reached  the  centre  of  my  heart. 

Glad  the  story  I  recount, 
How  that  drop  became  a  fount, 
Bubbled  up  a  living  Avell, 
Made  my  heart  begin  to  swell. 

All  within  my  soul  was  praise. 
Praise  increasing  all  my  days ; 
Praise  whicli  could  not  silent  be 
Floods  were  struggling  to  be  free. 

More  and  more  tlie  waters  grew, 
Open  Avide  the  flood-gates  flew. 
Leaping  forth  in  streams  of  song 
Flowed  my  happy  life  along. 

Lo,  a  river  clear  and  sweet 
Laved  my  glad,  obedient  feet ! 
Soon  it  rose  up  to  my  knees, 
And  I  praised  and  prayed  with  ease. 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  265 

KoAv  my  soul  in  praises  swims, 
Bathes  in  songs,  and  psalms,  and  hymns ; 
Plunges  down  into  the  deeps, 
All  her  powers  in  worship  steeps. 

Hallelujah  !  0  my  Lord, 
Torrents  from  my  soul  are  poured  ! 
I  am  carried  clean  away, 
Praising,  praising  all  the  day. 

In  an  ocean  of  delight, 
Praising  God  with  all  my  might. 
Self  is  drowned.     So  let  it  be  : 
Only  Christ  remains  to  me. 

This  hymn  was  written  only  a  year  or  two  ago. 
Those  w^ho  read  it  will  note  that  the  same  love  to 
Christ  which  was  the  burden  of  the  hymn  of  the 
youth  of  eighteen  is  the  theme  of  the  matured 
Christian  pastor,  who  has  meanwhile  become  the 
most  popular  preacher  of  the  century.  The  judicious 
reader  will  not  fail  to  see,  however,  the  mellowing 
and  enriching  influence  of  years  of  experience,  and 
of  those  labors,  conflicts,  and  trials  which  have  tested 
and  proved  the  value  of  his  early  convictions  and 
beliefs.  Those  who  were  present  at  the  College 
Conference  of  1890  are  not  likely  to  forget  the  thrill- 
ing effect  of  this  hymn  when  sung,  to  the  tune 
"  Nottingham,"  by  five  hundred  ministers  and  stu- 
dents. The  assembly  sat  at  the  commencement ;  but 
for  the  latter  verses  all  rose,  the  time  was  quickened, 
and  Mr.  Manton  Smith's  cornet  helped  to  swell  the 
volume  of  praise  expressed  by  the  writer. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 


VARIOUS   AGENCIES   IN   CONNECTION   WITH   MR. 
SPURGEON    AND    HIS    CHURCH. 

NOT  least  among  the  institutions  connected  with 
the  Tabernacle  are  the  Almhouses,  in  the 
Station  Road,  Walworth,  just  opposite  the  Elephant 
and  Castle  railway  station.  The  foundation-stone  of 
these  buildings  was  laid  6th  May,  1867.  Six  alms- 
houses had  been  founded  in  Dr.  Rippon's  time  ;  but  it 
was  necessary  to  remove  them,  and  desirable  to  place 
them  nearer  the  Tabernacle,  so  that  the  aged  inmates 
might  have  the  opportunity  of  attending  their  pastor's 
ministry.  The  new  houses  were  made  more  comfort- 
able and  convenient,  their  number  increased  to  seven- 
teen, and  the  income  of  the  inmates  augmented.  Over 
one  of  the  doors  is  this  inscription  :  — 

"  These  Buildings  are  connected  with  the  Ancient 
Church  now  Worshipping  in  the  Metropolitan 
Tabernacle.  Six  of  the  Almshouses,  together 
with  a  Schoolroom,  were  built  and  endowed 
under  the  Pastorate  of  Dr.  John  Rippon,  at  New 
Park  Street,  Southwark.  The  present  structures 
were  completed 

March,  1868. 
C.   H.   AND  J.   A.   Spurgeon,   Pastors." 


Life  of  Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon. 


267 


The  Schoolroom  is  at  present  used  by  the  London 
School  Board.  The  endowments  on  the  Almshouses 
are  considerable,  but  not  yet  sufficient  to  meet  the 
amount    paid    to   the    inmates.     We    have    already 


m 
O 

a 
< 

H 

M 

O 

p^ 

o 

H 


mentioned  that  Mr.  Spurgeon  gave   £5,000   to  the 
Almshouses  from  his  silver-wedding  testimonial. 
The  CoLPORTAGE  Association  was  founded  in  1866, 


268  Life  and  Labors  of 

and  has  worked  steadily  ever  since.  The  writer  has 
had  several  of  the  colporteurs  under  his  supervision ; 
and  he  can  testify  that,  although  all  the  men  are  not 
alike  good  and  adapted  to  their  work,  this  Christian 
agency,  as  a  whole,  is  one  of  the  most  useful,  the 
best  adapted  to  country  districts,  and  the  cheapest 
form  of  evangelical  effort  that  can  be  employed. 
The  men  not  only  sell  large  quantities  of  religious 
books,  but  they  distribute  tracts,  visit  the  sick,  con- 
duct Temperance  and  Band-of-Hope  meetings,  and 
preach  the  gospel  in  the  open-air,  and  in  chapels,  cot- 
tages, mission-rooms,  etc.  One  of  the  colporteurs, 
now  at  work  in  Surrey,  has  told  the  writer  that 
among  his  best  customers  for  books  are  the  evan- 
gelical clergy  of  the  Church  of  England,  who  are 
usually  ready  to  purchase  everything  that  ema- 
nates from  Mr.  Spurgeon's  pen.  About  ninety  col- 
porteurs are  now  employed  by  the  Association.  Its 
head-quarters  are  at  the  Pastors'  College.  A  colpor- 
teur can  usually  be  sent  to  any  district  for  which 
friends  guarantee  £40  per  annum.  The  Secretary 
is  always  glad  to  furnish  all  necessary  information 
as  to  the  method  of  opening  a  new  district. 

The  limit  of  space  compels  us  to  give  merely  a 
list  of  the  other  agencies  connected  with  the  Tab- 
ernacle. What  an  amount  of  Christian  work  is  re- 
presented by  the  following  table !  In  several  cases 
the  missions  mentioned  have  all  the  machinery  of 
a  large  church  in  active  operation,  although  the  mem- 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon, 


269 


bers  prefer  to  remain  in  fellowship  with  the  parent 
church,  rather  than  form  independent  organizations. 


Teachers 
and  Workers. 


Missions,  Schools,  etc.,  connected  with  the  Tabernacle. 

Name  of  Mission,  &c. 

Almshouses  Sunday-school 12 

Dunn's  Institute — 

Boddy's  Bridge 3 

Portobello  Road,  Notting  Hill    .....  9 

Battersea  Park  Road — 

Lavinia  Road,  King's  Cross 12 

Little  George  Street,  Bermondsey    .     .     .     .  12 

Bedfont,  near  Hounslow — 

North  Cheani 4 

Waltham  Abbey — 

Townsend  Street,  Old  Kent  Road    ....  25 

Centenary  Memorial 38 

Richmond   Street,  Walworth,    Sunday   and 

Ragged  schools 76 

Haddon  Hall,  Bermondsey 50 

Surrey  Gardens  Memorial  Hall 20 

Stockwell  Orphanage 40 

Landsdowne  Place 45 

Rock  Mission,  Camberwell 5 

Jireh  Mission,  Garden  Row,  S.E — 

Bermondsey  Ragged  School 13 

Boundary  Lane,  Camberwell 18 

Ebury  Street,  S.  W — 

Great  Hunter  Street .15 

North  Street,  Kensington       15 

Snow's  Field,  Bermondsey 13 

Palmer's  Green — 

Wanstead — 

Surrey  Square,  Old  Kent  Road 22 

Townley  Street,  Walworth 9 

Vinegar  Ground,  Old  Street 11 

Ormside  Street,  Old  Kent  Road       ....  5 

Scovill  Road,  Borough 12 

MetropoHtan  Tabernacle  Sunday-school   .     .  103 


Scholars. 
153 

90 
190 


120 
120 

30 

250 

408 

1080 
959 
300 
440 
300 
60 

250 
275 

170 
170 
160 


380 
200 
167 
80 
255 
1450 


270  Life  of  Pastor   0.  H.  Spurgeoii. 

Ten  Bible  Classes:  —  one  for  men  only,  one  for  women  only, 
one  for  men  and  women,  the  remainder  for  young  men  and 
young  women. 

Metropolitan  Tabernacle  Christian  Brothers'  Benefit  Society. 

Metropolitan  Tabernacle  Evangelists'  Association  and  Country 
Mission  (with  training  class  for  the  workers). 

Metropolitan  Tabernacle  Flower  Mission. 

Metropolitan  Tabernacle  Gospel  Temperance  Society. 

Metropolitan  Tabernacle  Ladies'  Benevolent  Society. 

Metropolitan  Tabernacle  Ladies'  Maternal  Society. 

Metropolitan  Tabernacle  Loan  Tract  Society  (for  the  house-to- 
house  distribution  of  Mr.  Spurgeon's  Sermons  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  the  Tabernacle). 
.    Spurgeon's  Sermons'  Tract  Society  (for  the  circulation  of  Mr. 
Spurgeon's  Sermons  in  Country  districts). 

Metropolitan  Tabernacle  Poor  Ministers'  Clothing  Society. 

City  Missionaries,  Bible  Women,  Mothers'  Meetings,  Orphan- 
age and  Colportage  Working  Societies,  and  numerous  other 
agencies. 

Where  no  figures  are  inserted  in  the  table  on  the  previous  page,  it  is 
to  be  understood  that  the  Mission  has  no  Sunday-scliool  connected 
with  it. 

It  will  thus  be  seen  that,  not  only  has  Mr.  Spurgeon 
himself  filled  up  his  life  with  an  amount  of  work 
enough,  and  more  than  enough,  for  twenty  ordinary 
men,  but  he  has  instilled  his  own  spirit  into  all  about 
him.  The  Tabernacle  Church,  and  its  numerous  and 
varied  agencies  —  from  the  College  downward  —  are 
all  well  organized  and  effectively  manned.  All  the 
wheels  are  in  motion,  "  for  the  spirit  of  life  is  in  the 
wheels."  May  God  graciously  remove  very  far  the 
day  when  the  sons  of  the  prophets  shall  have  to  say 
to  some  Elisha,  "  Knowest  thou  that  the  Lord  will 
take  away  thy  master  from  thy  head  to-day  ? " 


CHAPTER  XX. 

"THE  DOWN-GRADE   CONTROVERSY." 

IN  a  " Life "  of  Mr.  Spurgeon,  coming  down  to 
the  present  time,  it  would  not  be  proper  to 
pass  entirely  over  what  is  known  as  "  The  D own- 
Grade  Controversy."  But  while  we  must  needs 
make  some  reference  to  it,  we  have  no  intention 
of  attempting  to  write  its  history,  nor  of  going 
into  the  matter  at  any  length.  The  time  has  not 
come  for  writing  its  history ;  and  a  short  chapter 
at  the  end  of  a  book  (intentionally  free  from  con- 
troversy) is  far  too  limited  for  its  full  discussion. 
Each  year,  however,  and  almost  every  month,  brings 
proof  that  Mr.  Spurgeon's  testimony  on  behalf  of 
the  faith  once  for  all  delivered  to  the  saints  was 
both  needful  and  well-timed.  This  also  may  be 
said,  —  and  we  boldly  avow  it  as  not  only  our  con- 
viction, but  as  a  matter  of  fact,  —  that  no  change  has 
come  over  Mr.  Spurgeon,  either  as  to  his  sentiments 
and  the  faith  he  has  firmty  held,  and  as  boldly  taught 
from  the  very  first,  or  as  to  his  love  to  all  the  faith- 
ful in  Christ  Jesus.     The  change  has  taken  place  in 


272  Life  and  Labors  of 

others,  not  in  him.  If  any  proof  were  needed  that 
such  a  change  has  taken  place  in  others,  we  might 
point  to  the  recent  amalgamation  of  the  Particular 
and  General  Baptists.  The  name  "  Particular  Bap- 
tist," as  representing  the  Calvinistic  view  of  Re- 
demption, has  ceased  to  be  acknowledged  by  the 
Council  and  other  representatives  of  the  Baptist 
Union  —  at  least,  in  their  official  capacity.  So  far,  at 
least,  as  distinctive  doctrines  are  concerned,  the 
principles  of  the  fathers  of  the  denomination  and  the 
Particular  Baptist  founders  of  the  Missionary  Society 
are  alike  ignored. 

The  Christian  union  and  fellowship  of  believers 
who,  though  they  differ  as  to  doctrine,  yet  hold  the 
Head,  and  meet,  and  pray,  and  work  as  one  in 
Christ,  while  each  one  holds  his  own,  is  quite  an- 
other matter.  Mr.  Spurgeon  has  always  set  a  noble 
example  of  this,  though,  when  occasion  required,  he 
has  not  hesitated  to  boldly  avow  and  honestly  de- 
clare his  own  sentiments  wherein  he  differed  from 
his  brethren.  From  the  very  first,  many  of  the  evan- 
gelical clergy  of  the  Church  of  England  have  given 
him  their  cordial  sympathy,  and  in  some  cases  their 
practical  co-operation ;  and  he  has  delighted  in  their 
fellowship,  as  men  of  God  and  brethren  beloved. 
But  he  has  never  spared,  on  fitting  occasions,  what 
he  believes  to  be  their  errors,  as  witness  his  sermon 
on  ''  Baptismal  Regeneration." 

But  the  ground  of  his  testimony  is  not  simply  nor 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  273 

chiefly  departure  from  the  doctrines  of  our  Puritan 
forefathers.  As  must  be  admitted,  there  are  graver 
errors  poisoning  the  Church,  exhausting  her  vitality, 
and  dishonoring  her  Head.  The  doctrines  of  the 
Universal  Fatherhood  of  God,  Conditional  Immor- 
tality, Post-mortem  Salvation,  and  other  speculations 
which  go  by  the  name  of  ''  Modern  Thought "  or 
"  Progressive  Theology ; "  as  also  the  denial  of  the 
substitutionary  nature  of  Christ's  sacrifice,  and  the 
need  and  efficacy  of  His  atoning  death  as  the  basis  of 
practical  reconciliation  to  God ;  and  beneath,  and  at 
the  back  of  all,  the  denial  of  the  full  inspiration  of 
the  Bible  as  God's  own  Word  of  truth,  —  these  are 
the  errors  against  which  his  testimony  for  God  has 
been  raised ;  and,  thank  God !  not  in  vain.  In  this 
testimony  for  his  Master  he  has  had  no  man  to  please, 
no  man  to  fear ;  and  while  some  who  professed  to 
deplore  the  same  evils  have  either  sheltered  the 
erroneous  teachers  or  quietly  held  their  peace,  he  has 
nobly  borne  the  brunt  of  the  battle ;  and  we  believe 
he  would  have  done  so  had  he  stood  alone.  But  alone 
he  is  not.  Never,  in  all  his  marvellous  career,  has  he 
had  so  thoroughly  the  hearty  sympathy  of  those  who 
love  truth  above  human  applause  and  the  fear  of  the 
frowns  of  men,  as  in  this  testimony  for  his  Master. 
Hundreds  of  thousands  of  faithful  men  and  women, 
in  almost  every  land,  and  in  all  denominations  which 
hold  to  the  impregnable  principles  of  the  "  glorious 
gospel   of    the   blessed   God,"    have   expressed   their 

18 


274  Life  of  Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon. 

hearty,  and  often  practical,  sympathy  with  the  man 
who  dared  to  speak  out  boldly  for  his  Lord. 

Never  shall  we  forget  the  first  meeting  called  by 
the  Council  of  the  Evangelical  Alliance  for  testimony 
to  the  fundamental  truths  of  the  gospel,  and  held  in 
Exeter  Hall.  The  reception  given  by  the  audience  to 
Mr.  Spurgeon  when  he  rose  to  speak  was  almost 
overpowering  in  its  fervor  and  heartiness.  We 
occupied  a  seat  on  the  platform  near  enough  to 
witness  the  powerful  emotions  that  agitated  his  soul, 
and  the  tears  that  streamed  down  his  cheeks  as  he 
listened  to  previous  speakers ;  and  though  only  a 
very  few  of  his  Baptist  brethren  were  present,  there 
was  not  wanting  such  a  display  of  hearty  sympathy  as 
must  have  been  cheering  to  his  heart,  and  comforting 
to  his  soul.  Since  then  time  has  revealed  much  ; 
and  following  months  and  years  will,  no  doubt,  make 
more  and  more  evident  how  needful  was  the  protest 
which  fidelity  to  God  and  to  the  gospel  would  not 
allow  him  to  withhold. 

The  Lord  graciously  purge  His  Church  of  all  false 
doctrine,  all  false  teachers,  and  all  who  are  traitors 
in  the  camp  of  Israel !  And  may  the  Spirit  from  on 
high  be  poured  out  upon  all  flesh,  that  all  the  ends  of 
the  earth  may  see,  and  own,  and  rejoice  in,  the  salva- 
tion of  our  God ! 


<v 

CD 

n 


CHAPTER  XXL 

MR,    SPURGEON    AT   HOME. 

SOON  after  his  settlement  in  London  Mr.  Spurgeon 
had  a  pleasant  home  in  Helensburgh  House, 
Nightingale  Lane,  Clapham,  of  which  we  have  given  a 
view  on  the  previous  page.  Clapham  was  then  coun- 
try, and  the  grounds  around  Helensburgh  House  made 
it  a  quiet  and  somewhat  secluded  residence,  where 
Mr.  Spurgeon  could,  so  far  as  time  and  his  many 
engagements  permitted,  take  that  exercise  and  recrea- 
tion which  are  so  needful  to  every  one.  Here  he 
spent  many  happy  years. 

There  was  a  favorite  retreat  which  he  greatly  de- 
lighted in,  formed  amid  the  branches  of  a  large  and 
venerable  tree.  When  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle 
took  the  place  of  New  Park  Street  Chapel,  the 
pulpit  stairs  of  the  latter  sanctuary,  which  had  been 
removed  in  the  enlargement  of  the  chapel,  were  util- 
ized as  a  means  of  ascent  to  the  kind  of  Robinson 
Crusoe  retreat,  as  shown  opposite.  In  course  of  years, 
however,  they  grew  rather  too  crazy  for  the  weight  of 
divinity  that  had  so  often  passed  up  and  down  them. 


Life  of  Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeon. 


279 


On  the  opposite  page  is  a  view  of  the  garden  of  Mr. 
Spurgeon's  Nightingale  Lane  residence ;  but,  as  the 
nightingales  had  forsaken  their  old  haunts  in  the  lane, 
and  London  approached  almost  daily  nearer  and 
nearer,  Mr.  Spurgeon  was  glad  when  the  way  was 
opened  for  his  removal  to  Norwood. 

He  has  related  to  the  writer,  in  walking  over  the 
charming  grounds  at  "  Westwood,"  the  circumstances 


ENTRANCE    TO    "  WESTWOOD. 

which  led  him  to  his  present  residence,  Beulah  Hill, 
Upper  Norwood.  They  cannot  be  recorded  here; 
but  if  they  could,  the  reader  would  distinctly  trace  the 
kind  providence  of  that  God  whose  servant  the  owner 
of  "  Westwood  "  is. 

The  entrance  to  "  Westwood  "  is  not  imposing,  but 
it  is  the  opening  to  a  wider  scene.     By  means  of  that 


280 


Life  and  Labors  of 


gate  tens  of  thousands  of  letters,  many  of  them  bear- 
ing tidings  of  blessings  received  from  Mr.  Spurgeon's 
sermons,  or  accompanying  donations  for  the  various 
Tabernacle  enterprises,  have  entered.     Let  the  sight 


fff^n. 

.'       y 

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of  that  gate  remind  the  reader  to  remember  in  prayer 
the  often  wearv  man  of  God  who  hnds  his  home  at 
"  Westwood." 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spxirgeon.  281 

Neither  the  house  nor  the  grounds  can  be  seen 
from  Beulah  Hill.  The  views  of  the  surrounding- 
country  from  various  parts  of  the  grounds  are  delight- 
ful in  the  extreme.  The  cosey  arbor,  of  which  we  give 
a  picture  on  the  preceding  page,  is  not  far  from  what 
was  made  by  a  former  proprietor  into  a  bowling-green. 
It  is  a  gladdening  sight  to  see  how  the  students  from 
the  Pastors'  College  can  recreate  here,  when  they  are 
invited  down  to  "  Westwood "  for  a  day,  while  the 
President  and  the  Professors  meet  for  conference  in 
the  arbor. 

"  Westwood  "  was  built  by  a  gentleman  of  widely 
different  tastes  from  those  of  the  present  owner. 
The  billiard-room  was  a  spacious  apartment,  most 
elaborately  ornamented,  and  well  lighted.  It  has 
made  an  admirable  study,  the  decorations  and  gas- 
lights being  unaltered.  In  the  drawing  on  the  next 
page  Mr.  Spurgeon  can  be  seen  as  he  usually  appears 
when  at  his  work  in  this  room.  Behind  him  is  an 
open  door,  leading  into  a  private  study,  from  which 
you  can  pass  into  the  conservatories.  This  inner 
sanctum  is  humorously  named  "  The  Den,"  although 
it  is  a  widely  different  place  from  John  Bunyan's 
"  Den."  At  the  study-table,  and  to  the  right  of 
Mr.  Spurgeon,  sits  Mr.  J.  W.  Harrald,  one  of  his 
private  secretaries.  Through  the  ample  windows,  to 
the  right  of  the  picture,  you  can  quickly  reach  one  of 
the  lawns  where  the  writer  has  taken  part  in  some 
pleasant  gatherings  of  students  and  others. 


^ 


CHAPTER  XXIL 

MR.   SPURGEON's   long   ILLNESS. 


READERS  of  "The  Metropolitan  Tabernacle  Pul- 
pit "  need  not  to  be  told,  what  those  less 
closely  acquainted  with  Mr.  Spurgeon  and  his  work 
may  not  so  well  remember,  that  for  many  years 
past  he  has  been  subject  to  periodical  attacks  of 
rheumatic  gout,  which  have  either  laid  him  pros- 
trate at  home,  or  necessitated  a  change  to  a  milder 
climate.  The  change  has  not  been,  so  much  as 
it  ought  to  have  been,  an  entire  rest.  The  literary 
part  of  his  work  has  been  still  pursued,  while  he  has 
been  kept  in  touch  with  the  Tabernacle  and  all  its 
manifold  institutions  and  agencies.  Moreover,  he 
has  drawn  around  him  a  circle  of  friends  of  various 
denominations  and  nationalities,  to  whom  he  has 
ministered,  even  when  too  weak  to  leave  his  hotel. 
As  is  well  known,  Mentone,  in  the  south  of  France, 
has  been  his  chosen  winter  resort,  and  to  this  charm- 
ing little  town  many  Christian  people  have  been 
attracted  by  the  fact  of  his  visits. 

After  the  College  Conference  held  in  April,  1891, 
when  Mr.  Spurgeon  almost  excelled  himself  in  his 


284  Life  and  Labors  of 

marvellously  powerful  inaugural  address  "  The  Great- 
est Fight  in  the  World,"  it  was  found  that  the  ex- 
hausting demands  of  these  meetings  on  mind  and 
body,  brain  and  heart,  had  left  him  exceedingly  weak 
and  prostrate.  He  struggled  on  bravely  for  some 
weeks ;  but  an  attack  of  influenza,  in  the  middle  of 
May,  completed  what  overwork  had  commenced.  In 
about  three  weeks  Mr.  Spurgeon  had  so  far  recovered 
that  on  Lord's-day  morning,  June  1th,  though  still 
weak,  he  preached  in  the  Tabernacle,  leaving  the 
following  day  for  the  country,  for  rest  and  change. 
Unhappily,  he  took  a  chill ;  his  old  enemy,  rheumatic 
gout,  assailed,  him ;  and  on  June  24th  his  symp- 
toms became  so  alarmingly  serious  that  Dr.  Joseph 
Kidd  was  called  in  to  consult  with  Dr.  R.  M.  Miller, 
of  Upper  Norwood,  who  had  been  in  attendance  since 
the  18th  of  May. 

At  the  beginning  of  July  there  seemed  to  be  good 
ground  for  believing  that  the  disease  —  congestion 
of  the  kidneys  —  was  being  subdued,  although  the 
patient's  pains  were  very  acute  ;  but  on  the  evening 
of  Saturday,  4th  of  July,  the  delirium,  which  had 
passed  away  for  some  days,  returned,  and  it  was 
evident  that  a  still  more  serious  stage  of  the  illness 
had  been  reached.  From  that  time  Dr.  Miller  slept 
at  "  Westwood"  every  night  for  several  weeks,  and  Dr. 
Kidd  had  a  consultation  with  him  every  morning. 

"  At  intervals,"  says  the  writer  of  "  Notes  "  in  "  The 
Sword  and  the  Trowel,"  "  a  few  bright  rays  of  hope 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  285 

have  shot  through  the  dense  darkness  which  has  sur- 
rounded the  sick  chamber ;  but  these  have  been  fol- 
lowed by  periods  of  most  painful  suspense,  in  which 
the  precious  life  has  seemed  to  reach  the  very  verge 
of  the  unseen  world.  All  that  medical  skill,  patient 
watching,  and  careful  nursing  could  do,  appeared,  for 
a  while,  to  be  of  no  avail." 

"  Meanwhile  prayer  without  ceasing  was  made  to 
God  for  him  the  world  over,  in  ordinary  meetings 
and  in  special  gatherings.  As  soon  as  the  critical 
condition  of  the  pastor  was  made  known,  the  church 
at  the  Tabernacle  constituted  itself  into  one  great 
protracted  prayer-meeting.  Not  only  did  thousands 
gather  together  for  a  day  of  prayer,  but  for  weeks 
special  prayer-meetings  have  been  continued  two  or 
three  times  daily.  ...  In  addition  to  the  officers 
and  members  of  the  church  at  the  Tabernacle, 
clergymen  and  ministers  and  missionaries  of  all  de- 
nominations have  been  present  at  the  public  gather- 
ings for  prayer ;  and  many  who  have  been  altogether 
out  of  sympathy  with  the  pastor  in  his  contention 
'  for  the  faith  once  for  all  delivered  to  the  saints'  have 
been  most  earnest  in  their  petitions  on  his  behalf." 

The  meetings  for  prayer  were  continued  daily  at 
the  Tabernacle  until  the  pastor  was  well  enough  to 
start  for  Mentone.  Also,  in  many  other  places  the 
streams  of  earnest  supplication  have  been  continued, 
showing,  in  a  remarkable  manner,  the  real  unity  of 
the  One  Church  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 


286  Life  and  Labors  of 

Among  press  notices,  the  following,  from  the  pen 
of  Dr.  Clifford,  in  "  The  Review  of  the  Churches," 
comes  all  the  more  gracefully  from  the  fact  that,  in 
some  important  theological  matters,  Mr.  Spurgeon 
and  Dr.  Clifford  are  very  far  apart :  — 

"  In  tender  sympathy,  the  whole  Christian  Church 
has  gathered  around  the  sufferer  at  Norwood,  and 
prayer  has  been  made  continually  to  God  for  him. 
In  hundreds  of  religious  gatherings  all  through  the 
English-speaking  world,  and  even  beyond,  his  afflic- 
tion has  been  the  burden  of  earnest  petitions.  Little 
children  have  asked  the  news  of  his  health  the  first 
thing  in  the  day,  and  '  the  great  ones  of  the  earth ' 
have  sent  him  assurances  of  their  watchful  sympathy. 
Men  outside  all  churches  have  been  stirred  by  the 
news  in  the  successive  bulletins,  and  hailed  with  joy 
any  sign  of  returning  vigor.  Earely,  if  ever,  has  a 
warmer  regard,  or  a  more  widespread  interest  in 
an  invalid,  been  elicited  than  in  the  distinguished 
preacher  of  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle.  .  .  .  And 
what  a  witness  is  this  to  the  sterling  qualities  of  the 
man, — to  the  invincible  faith  of  the  people  in  his 
sincerity,  as  well  as  their  admiration  for  his  excep- 
tional gifts  as  a  preacher  I  He  has  won  the  popular 
heart.  His  victory  over  it  is  complete.  He  holds  it 
still." 

The  manifestation  of  sympathy  with  the  sufferer 
and  his  beloved  ones  has  not  been  confined  to  prayers 
and  prayer-meetings ;    besides  numerous  callers,  let- 


Pastor  C.  H.  Sturgeon.  287 

ters  and  telegrams  have  reached  "  West  wood  "  from 
"all  sorts  and  conditions  of  men,"  and  from  all  parts 
of  the  world.  Among  the  more  notable  personages 
who  either  called,  wrote,  or  telegraphed,  the  follow- 
ing may  be  mentioned  :  — 

The  Prince  of  Wales ;  the  Duke  of  Argyll ;  the 
Marquis  of  Hartington ;  the  Earl  and  Countess  of 
Aberdeen ;  Earl  Fortescue ;  the  Countess  of  Seafield  ; 
Lord  and  Lady  Denman ;  Lord  and  Lady  Gilbert 
Kennedy ;  Lord  Brassey ;  Lord  and  Lady  Kinnaird  ; 
Lord  Kilmaine  ;  the  Dowager  Lady  Abercromby  ; 
Lady  Massy  ;  Lady  Peto  ;  Lady  Wright ;  Sir  Arthur 
and  Lady  Nicolson  ;  Lady  Louisa  Ashburton  ;  Lady 
Anne  Synge  ;  Sir  John  Burns ;  Sir  Charles  Lawson  ; 
Sir  Wilfrid  and  Lady  Lawson  ;  Lady  King-Hall  ; 
Lady  Gordon  (Edinburgh)  ;  Sir  A.  H.  Layard  ;  Sir 
Frederick  Perkins  ;  Sir  Henry  Peto  ;  Sir  John  and 
Lady  Simon  ;  the  Right  Hon.  W.  E.  Gladstone, 
M.P. ;  the  Right  Hon.  Hugh  Childers,  M.P. ;  Mr. 
Benjamin  Scott,  City  Chamberlain,  and  Mrs.  Scott; 
and  such  representatives  of  the  best  men  and  women 
in  all  the  churches  as  Mrs.  Pennefather  ;  Messrs. 
T.  A.  Denny;  W.  J.  Evelyn;  William  Fowler;  F.  W. 
N.  Lloyd ;  D.  McLaren ;  E.  Rawlings  ;  J.  Herbert 
Tritton ;  George  Williams ;  and  Dr.  Barnardo.  A 
long  hst  of  the  clergy,  "High,"  "  Low,"  and  "  Broad," 
might  be  headed  by  the  Archbishops  of  Canterbury 
and  York,  the  Bishops  of  Exeter,  Liverpool,  Ripon, 
Rochester,  Sydney  (New  South  Wales)  Winchester, 


288  Life  and  Labors  of 

and  Worcester ;  the  Dean  of  Westminster  ;  the  Arch- 
deacons of  Llandaff  and  Liverpool ;  and  Canons  Bell, 
Bullock  J  Fleming,  Jenkins,  Palmer,  Money,  Side- 
botham,  John  Smith,  Tugwell,  and  Wilberforce.  The 
Reformed  Episcopal  and  Free  Churches  of  England 
were  represented  by  Bishops  Dicksee,  Richardson, 
and  Sugden  ;  while  the  sympathy  of  Jews  was 
most  kindly  expressed  by  their  Chief  Rabbi,  Dr. 
Hermann  Adler.  Nonconformist  ministers  of  all 
denominations  were  most  hearty  in  their  sympa- 
thetic utterances ;  while  cablegrams,  telegrams,  let- 
ters, and  resolutions  came  from  almost  endless 
Associations,  Assemblies,  Colleges,  Committees,  Con- 
ferences, Congresses,  Conventions,  Institutions,  Mis- 
sions, Societies,  Synods,  Unions,  ttc,  including  almost 
all  the  great  religious  and  philanthropic  agencies  of 
the  Metropolis,  the  United  Kingdom,  and  many  parts 
of  the  Continent  and  the  English  Colonies  through- 
out the  world. 

One  of  the  most  noteworthy  letters  was  the  follow- 
ing from  Mr.  Gladstone  to  Mrs.  Spurgeon  :  — 

My  dear  Madam,  —  In  my  own  home,  darkened  at 
the  present  time,  I  have  read  with  studied  interest 
daily  accounts  of  Mr.  Spurgeon's  illness  ;  and  I  can- 
not help  conveying  to  you  the  earnest  assurance  of 
my  sympathy  with  you,  and  with  him  ;  and  of  my 
cordial  admiration,  not  only  of  his  splendid  powers, 
but  still  more  of  his  devoted  and  unfailing  character. 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  289 

May  I  humbly  commend  you  and  him,  in  all  contin- 
gencies, to  the  infinite  stores  of  the  Divine  love  and 
mercy,  and  subscribe  myself,  my  dear  madam. 
Faithfully  yours, 

W.  E.  Gladstone. 

Mrs.  Spurgeon  sent  the  following  reply,  the  post- 
script being  in  her  husband's  handwriting  :  — 

Westwood,  Upper  Norwood, 

l^th  Jul  I/,  1891. 

Dear  Mr.  Gladstone,  —  Your  words  of  sym- 
pathy have  a  special  significance  and  tenderness, 
coming  from  one  who  has  just  passed  through  the 
deep  waters  which  seem  now  to  threaten  me.  I  thank 
you  warmly  for  your  expressions  of  regard  for  my  be- 
loved husband,  and  with  all  my  heart  I  pray  that  the 
consolations  of  God  may  abound  towards  you,  even  as 
they  do  to  me.  Although  we  cannot  yet  consider  the 
dear  patient  out  of  danger,  the  doctors  have  to-day 
issued  a  somewhat  more  hopeful  bulletin.  I  feel  it  is 
an  honor  to  be  allowed  to  say  that  I  shall  ever  be 
Your  grateful  friend, 

S.  Spurgeon. 

P.  S.  —  Yours  is  a  word  of  love  such  as  those  only 
wa-ite  who  have  been  into  the  King's  country,  and 
have  seen  much  of  His  face.  My  heart's  love  to 
you. 

C.  H.  Spurgeon. 

19 


290  Life  and  Labors  of 

The  letter  to  the  congregation  at  the  Tabernacle, 
dated  9th  of  August,  of  Avhich  the  following  is  a 
reduced  facsimile,  was  the  first  Mr.  Spurgeon  was 
able  to  write  with  his  own  hand :  — 


VWiA-^ 


Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeon.  291 

The  following  note,  written  by  Mr.  Spurgeon,  ap- 
peared in  "  The  Sword  and  the  Trowel "  for  October, 
1891.  He  was  then  making  slow  progress,  able  to 
take  carriage  exercise,  and  looking  forward  hope- 
fully—though probably  after  a  lengthened  sojourn 
in  some  sunny  clime  —  to  take  up  again  some  parts 
at  least  of  his  manifold  work  :  — 

"  I  am  unable  to  send  a  personal  letter  of  thanks 
to  the  thousands  of  friends,  of  all  ranks  and  religions, 
who  wrote  sympathetic  letters  to  Mrs.  Spurgeon  and 
myself  during  the  dark  days  of  my  illness  ;  but  I  beg, 
in  the  best  manner  possible  to  me,  to  return  my 
hearty  thanks  to  them  all  To  my  dear,  sorrowing 
wife,  the  kind  words  from  all  quarters  were,  by  God's 
blessing,  an  unutterable  consolation.  I  was  too  ill 
to  know  much  about  the  matter ;  but  now  I  am  re- 
covering, the  reading  of  these  generous  expressions 
fills  my  eyes  with  tears,  my  mind  with  astonishment, 
and  my  heart  with  gratitude.  Surely  there  is  a 
imity  deep  down  in  the  Church  of  God,  and  on  fit 
occasions  it  shows  itself:  that  I  should  furnish 
such  an  occasion,  overwhelms  me.  Some  of  those 
affectionate  expressions,  from  persons  who  are  eccle- 
siastically divided  from  me,  are  as  fervent  as  if  we 
agreed  on  every  point,  and  are  vastly  more  true 
and  precious  than  if  that  were  the  case.  Brethren 
and  sisters  in  Christ,  the  Lord  recompense  upon  each 
of  you  a  hundred-fold  your  tender  consideration   of 


292  Life  and  Labors  of 

one  who  had  no  claim  upon  you  but  his  great 
affliction  ! 

"  To  those  who  are  not  of  the  Christian  faith,  I 
cannot  but  feel  a  singular  tenderness  when  I  read, 
not  only  their  respectful  inquiries,  but  their  generous 
sentiments  towards  me.  It  is  astonishing  to  me  that 
I  should  have  so  warm  a  place  in  their  esteem ;  and 
I  trust  I  may  do  nothing  which  will  prove  me  un- 
w^orthy  of  it. 

"  I  have  also  the  happy  task  of  thanking  the 
countless  friends  who  did  not  write  to  me^  but  lifted 
up  their  hearts  in  prayer  on  my  behalf.  I  have  been 
saved  from  death  by  prayer.  Tn  very  many  instances 
there  has  l)een  an  assured  faith  with  the  prayer ; 
and  this  has  been  the  certain  token  of  prevalence 
with  God.  To  hear  that  friends  unknown  to  me 
spent  whole  nights  in  supplication  for  me,  and  that 
multitudes  of  churches  presented  special  intercession, 
made  me  very  happy,  and  caused  me  to  say  at  the 
very  worst,  '  I  shall  not  die,  but  live,  and  declare  the 
works  of  the  Lord.' 

"  That  every  one  of  those  who  thought  of  me  so 
lo\ingly  may  thus  be  remembered  by  the  Great 
Father  in  any  future  hour  of  sorrow,  is  my  fervent 
prayer.  "'  C.  H.  Spurgeon." 

Since  this  note  changes  have  taken  place,  but 
the  beloved  patient  is  not  yet  well.  He  is  in  the 
Lord's  hands  ;  and  there,  with  confidence  and  sub- 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeo7i, 

mission,  we  must  be  content  to  leave  him,  with  the 
prayer  that  God  will  fulfil  our  highest  hopes,  and 
disappoint  all  our  fears  and  apprehensions. 

In  one  of  the  issues  of  "  The  New  York  Observer," 
during  September,  1891,  is  an  article  by  the  English 
correspondent  of  that  excellent  paper,  on  "  Mr.  Spur- 
geon's  Long  Illness."  The  writer  mentions  the 
prayer  of  some  one  he  knew,  meaning  himself,  that 
God  would  add  to  Mr.  Spurgeon's  life  "  fifteen  years," 
as  he  did  in  the  case  of  Hezekiah,  citing  the  cases 
of  Mr.  Keach's  recovery,  and  the  restoration  of  Mr. 
Charles,  of  Bala,  in  answer  to  earnest  prayers. 

The  following  verses,  which  appeared  in  ''  The 
Sword  and  the  Trowel,"  show  that  others  offered  a 
similar  prayer.  The  Lord  graciously  answer  in  this 
case,  as  in  those  above-mentioned  I 

A  PEAYER   FOR   MR.   SPURGEON, 

Put  back  the  dial,  Lord, 

As  in  the  olden  day  !  i 
Thy  saving  strength  afford  :  — 

For  this  we  humbly  pray. 

The  warrior  who,  in  might, 

Did  Thine  own  weapon  wield, 
Has  fallen  in  the  fight, 

Lies  stricken  on  the  field. 

The  voice  that  sounded  clear 

Above  the  jaugling  crowd. 
That  brought  "  glad  tidings  "  near. 

And  published  it  aloud  ; 

1  2  Kinofs  XX.  11. 


294  Life  and  Labors  of 

Those  trumpet  tones  are  faint, 

That  rang  from  shore  to  shore : 
O  God  !     Thy  suffering  saint 

Give  back  to  us  once  more  ! 

Sucli  evils  to  be  met, 

Such  battles  to  be  won, 
Such  wickedness  —  and  yet 

The  conflict  scarce  begun. 

'T  is  Thine  to  give  the  Avord, 

And  Ave  can  only  ])ray  — 
"  Put  back  the  dial,  Lord, 
As  in  the  olden  day  ! " 

Arthur  Mee,  F.  R,  A.  S, 
Llanelly,  Carmarthenshire. 

It  may  be  well  to  add  a  few  words  in  closing  this 
chapter.  They  must  be  brief,  but  they  should  not 
be  wanting  in  expressions  of  heartfelt  thankfulness 
for  all  the  past,  and  for  all  the  hopeful  signs  of  prob- 
able restoration.  We  wish  we  could  say  certain 
signs ;  but  all  the  future  is  Avith  Him  who  liolds  all 
issues  in  His  mighty  hand,  —  a  hand  guided  by  infalli- 
ble wisdom,  and  moved  by  a  heart  of  unbounded  and 
everlasting  love. 

For  all  the  grace  given  to  the  countless  thousands 
of  suppliants,  and  for  all  the  answers  to  their  prayers 
already  bestowed,  let  tbe  name  of  the  Lord  be 
praised.  We  may  well  sing  again  the  chorus  so 
often  sung  in  past  years  at  the  stirring  of  the 
baptismal  pool, — 

"  Praise  ye  the  Lord  !     Hallelujah  ! 
Hallelujah  !     Praise  ye  the  Lord !  " 


or  r 


Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeon.  295 

or  that  older  doxology  which  was  sung  at  the  rail- 
way station  ns  the  train  that  bore  the  distinguished 
patient  towards  the  land  of  summer  and  flowers  was 
starting,  and  which  was  taken  up  by  friends  and  the 
railway  officials  of  different  degrees,  — 

"Praise  God,  from  whom  all  blessiugs  flow. 
Praise  Him  all  creatures  here  below, 
Praise  Him  above,  ye  heavenly  host, 
Praise  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost ;  " 

repeat  the  joyful  strains  of  the  youthful  Milton,  — 

"  Let  us,  with  a  gladsome  mind. 
Praise  the  Lord,  for  he  is  kind  : 
For  His  mercies  shall  endure, 
Ever  faithful,  ever  sure." 

As  to  the  future,  we  must  still  wait,  and  pray,  and 
hope  ;  and  hope,  and  pray,  and  wait.  The  deeply 
interesting  article  by  Mr.  Spurgeon  in  "  The  Sword 
and  the  Trowel "  for  December,  informs  us  as  to  the 
caution  which  the  doctors  have  strictly  enjoined  upon 
him.  Two  months  at  Mentone  have  manifested  some 
progress  towards  recovery,  although  the  time  of  the 
year  is  that  when  all  the  springs  oi  life  are  down. 
Mr.  Spurgeon  has  been  for  many  years  an  overworked 
man,  and  he  is  now  no  longer  young.  The  spring' 
may  do  much  for  him,  by  God's  blessing,  and  we 
trust  it  will.  But  his  great  weakness  of  body  warns 
us  not  to  expect  him  to  be  well  enough  to  return  to 
his  pulpit  for  several  months  ;  and  for  a  long  time 
to  come  his  church  must  probably  be  content  with 


296  Life  of  Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon, 

one  service  on  the  Lord's-day.  Mr.  Spiirgeon  has 
such  faith  in  the  prayers  of  believers  all  over  the 
world  being  answered,  that  he  is  quite  sanguine 
as  to  his  complete  restoration.  Let  us  still  pray 
that  God  will  give  him  back  to  us,  —  to  the  Church 
and  to  the  world ;  and  that  the  remembrance  of 
all  his  sufferings  ma}^  give  added  emphasis  in 
the  hearts  of  the  myriads  of  his  readers  to  those 
wonderful  utterances  of  gospel  truth  which  seem 
more  and  more  pregnant  with  spiritual  power  as  they 
are  read  and  re-read  again  and  again.  The  last 
sermon  but  one  that  Mr.  Spurgeon  preached  before 
he  was  taken  ill  was  a  very  remarkable  discourse 
upon  the  text,  "  My  times  are  in  Thy  liand."  This 
was  true  at  that  time,  it  has  been  true  ever  since, 
and  it  is  true  still.  He  is  in  the  hands  of  our  Father 
and  his,  the  God  who  only  doeth  wondrous  things, 
who  makes  no  mistakes,  and  — 

"  Whose  love  is  as  large  as  His  power, 
And  neither  knows  measure  nor  end." 

Here  we  rest,  for  — 

"  All  our  times  are  iu  His  hand, 
All  events  at  His  command." 


CHAPTER   XXTIl. 

MR.    SPURGEON    AT    MENTONE. 

'IT/HEN  he  was  much  younger  Mr.  Spiirgeoii 
^  ^  visited  various  parts  of  the  Continent  of 
Europe,  though  no  inducement  —  and  he  has  had 
many  very  strong  ones  —  has  won  him  over  to  cross 
the  Atlantic.  But  for  many  years,  needing  rest 
as  well  as  change,  and  especially,  on  account  of 
his  rheumatic  affection,  a  milder  climate  than  that 
of  England  in  winter,  he  has  spent  his  vacation  at 
Mentone,in  the  South  of  France.  Hotel  Beau  Rivage, 
of  which  we  give  a  view  on  the  next  page,  has  been 
his  phice  of  sojourn  for  several  years.  Mr.  Spurgeon 
describes  it  as  a  quiet,  homely  place,  and  speaks  in 
high  terms  of  the  host  and  hostess,  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Bernhard.  The  apartments  occupied  by  Mr.  Spurgeon 
are  on  the  first  floor  to  the  right,  the  windows  of 
which  are  hidden  by  the  palms  in  front.  Dr.  Sewell, 
a  Canadian  physician,  residing  at  the  hotel,  took  the 
view  which  we  have  reproduced  ;  and,  at  his  request, 
Mr.  Spurgeon,  and  Mr.  Passmore,  the  pastor's  friend, 
deacon,   and    publisher,    occupied    positions    in    the 


HOTEL    BEAU    RIVAGE,    MEXTOXE. 


Life  of  Pastor   0.  H.  Spurgeon.  299 

balcony  to  the  left  of  the  picture,  in  the  floor  above, 
when  the  photograph  was  taken. 

It  is  not  rest  and  change  only  that  Mr.  Spurgeon 
finds  in  the  sunny  South  ;  it  is  his  privilege  to  meet 
there  many  others  like-minded,  with  whom  he  enjoys 
holy  fellowship  in  the  things  of  God.  On  one  of  his 
annual  visits  he  met  at  Mentone  the  venerable 
George  Miiller,  of  Bristol,  Mr.  J.  Hudson  Taylor,  the 
founder  of  the  China  Inland  Mission,  and  the  late 
Pastor  John  Bost,  the  president  of  the  asylums  for 
imbeciles,  epileptics,  etc.,  at  La  Force.  Mr.  Spurgeon 
wrote  an  interesting  description  of  this  "•  Interview 
with  Three  of  the  King's  Captains,"  and  published 
it  in  "  The  Sword  and  the  Trowel."  His  magazine 
has  frequently  been  enriched  and  enlivened  with  arti- 
cles about  Mentone  and  its  surroundings.  Not  being 
able  to  walk  much,  he  has,  in  his  carriage-drives, 
explored  the  whole  region ;  and  he  has  written  his 
impressions  of  the  "  Drives  at  Mentone  "  in  a  style 
which  could  never  be  found  in  a  mere  guide-book. 
From  one  of  these,  "  The  Boulevard  Victoria,"  we 
take  the  following  extracts,  as  specimens  :  — 

"  We  drive  from  H5tel  Beau  Rivage  in  the  direction 
of  Italy,  and  are  scarcely  started  before  our  eyes  rest 
upon  an  inscription  upon  the  wall  of  a  villa,  which, 
being  turned  into  English,  reads  as  follows :  '  The 
sun,  the  soft  and  salubrious  climate,  and  the  water  of 
the  sea  combined,  constitute  the  chief  remedies 
created  by  the  good   God :    thanks   to  the   glory  of 


300  Life  and  Labors  of 

the  supreme  Benefactor,  who  has  deigned  thus  to 
favor  us ! '  To  this  is  added,  '  First  villa  built  at 
Menton  for  accommodating  strangers,  bj  J.  Franciosy, 
1855.' 

''  Very  good,  M.  Franciosy  !  How  greatly  has  your 
little  town  increased  and  improved  since  you  took  in 
your  first  guest !  Truly,  it  is  a  real  sanatorium  for 
the  sick,  and  a  place  of  delight  to  those  who  have 
health  enough  to  enjoy  it.  You  did  well  to  ascribe 
praise  unto  God. 

''  The  Custom-house,  next  to  the  Grand  Hotel,  used 
to  be  a  very  busy  spot,  —  a  place  of  torment  to  poor 
importers  crossing  the  border,  and  often  a  place  of 
delay  to  travellers  because  the  way  was  blocked  by 
carts,  and  cattle,  and  carriages,  and  all  sorts  of  con- 
trivances, undergoing  search  by  the  custom-house 
officers.  There  is  very  little  doing  here  now.  France 
vexes  Italy,  and  Italy  envies  France,  after  the  same 
fashion  as  Ephraim  and  Judah  did  of  old.  Hence  an 
ugly  tariff,  which  is  injurious  to  both  nations,  and 
stops  the  trade  which  would  have  been  beneficial 
to  thousands.  Still,  if  a  cart  should  come  b}^ 
you  will  be  amused  by  the  way  in  which  the 
officers  thrust  their  long  rapiers  into  the  bales  of 
goods,  or  trusses  of  hay.  What  unpacking,  lugging 
down  of  baskets,  weighing,  chattering,  paper-signing, 
and  waiting!  This  once  done,  the  collectors  of  the 
customs  of  the  republic  return  to  a  never-ending, 
but  healthful,  game  of  bowls.  .  .  . 


Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  301 

"  We  ascend  between  high  walls,  and  with  a  sharp 
turn  to  the  left  we  come  upon  the  new  road.  This 
road  runs  around  the  back  of  the  gigantic  arm-chair 
which  forms  the  East  Bay.  To  this  bay  the  words  of 
the  late  Dr.  Robertson,  of  Irvine,  are  peculiarly  ap- 
propriate :  it  is  '  walled  all  round  on  three  sides  — 
west,  north,  and  east  —  by  a  double  range  of  moun- 
tains, through  which  no  valley  cuts  a  passage  for  the 
wind,  thus  effectually  screening  it,  in  God's  good 
providence,  from  all .  western  mistrals,  northern 
glacials,  and  eastern  Euroclydons.'  Many  persons 
think  this  bay  too  warm,  — '  relaxing,'  they  call  it. 
But  we  come  out  on  purpose  to  be  warm ;  and  if  we 
looked  for  a  bracing  air,  we  certainly  should  not 
travel  to  the  south  of  France.  .  .  . 

''  How  often,  on  a  Sabbath  afternoon,  have  I  rested 
here,  and  many  a  page  have  I  written  in  the  olive- 
gardens,  both  above  and  below  this  walk  !  With  a 
waterproof  rug  spread  on  the  ground,  on  a  choice 
corner  of  a  terrace,  where  we  could  see  the  harbor, 
I  have  listened  to  a  reader,  and  then  have  turned  my 
friend  into  a  shorthand  writer,  and  dictated  to  him  as 
quickly  as  I  could  speak.  By  this  process  came  forth 
to  the  world  the  little  book  entitled,  'The  Clue  of 
the  Maze.'  I  mention  this  only  to  encourage  other 
invalids  to  use  this  spot  for  the  purpose  of  quiet  re- 
pose. I  know  not  whether  the  proprietors  of  the 
olive-gardens  are  as  tolerant  towards  visitors  as  they 
formerly  were  ;  they  never  questioned  me. 


302  Life  of  Pastor  C.  H.  Spurgeon. 

"  Here  we  are  right  over  the  Old  Town.  What 
little  furrows  or  burrows  the  streets  appear  I  The 
people  must  be  able  to  shake  liands  out  of  the  win- 
dows from  both  sides.  What  a  terror  they  must 
have  been  in  when  that  church-steeple  rocked  to  and 
fro  in  the  earthquake !  Nobody  could  tell  on  whose 
house  the  lofty  tower  would  fall,  and  assuredly,  had 
it  come  down,  the  fragments  would  have  crashed 
through  those  tile  roofs  like  a  shower  of  shells  from 
some  tremendous  fortification..  The  houses  from  this 
point  look  old  and  dowdy,  and  strike  the  observer 
as  a  strange  conglomeration  of  abodes ;  but  they 
shelter  a  quiet  and  respectable  people,  who  far  excel 
in  their  morals  the  masses  who  are  herded  together 
in  London  slums,  and  have  not  the  responsibilities  of 
those  in  the  cities  of  England  by  whom  the  gospel 
is  so  persistently  refused." 

While  we  write,  Mr.  Spurgeon  is  again  at  Mentone  ; 
and  for  the  first  time  for  a  quarter  of  a  century  his 
beloved  wife  has  been  well  enough  to  accompany  him. 
She  has  often  heard  of  the  beauties  of  Mentone,  and 
at  last  she  is  able  to  enjoy  them  in  company  with  her 
dear  husband ;  and  thus  the  enjoyment  of  both  of 
them  has  been  greatly  increased.  May  he  return  to 
his  work,  and  to  his  church  and  people,  with  restored 
health,  in  the  possession  of  his  old  vigor,  to  achieve 
yet  greater  things  for  the  Lord  of  hosts,  the  covenant 
God  of  the  spiritual  Israel! 


CHAPTER   XXIV. 


CONCLUSION. 


\  T  ^E  commenced  this  "  Life  "  of  Mr.  Spurgeon  by 
V  V  remarking  that  he  was  signally  called  and 
fitted  to  do  a  great  work  for  God,  unparalleled  in  his 
day,  as  in  all  previous  ages  of  Christianity.  That  he 
has  been  specially  used  by  God  to  an  extent  to  which 
no  living  man  besides  has  been  used  is  a  fact  that 
very  few  will  question  ;  but  the  extent  to  which  he 
has  been  used  will  never  be  fully  known,  until  the 
veil  of  eternity  shall  be  lifted,  and  the  secrets  of  all 
hearts  be  made  known.  It  is  abundantly  evident  that 
he  is  a  God-made  man,  and  in  a  very  special  sense  a 
God-sent  man.  As  the  Lord  sent  Gideon,  so  has  He 
sent  Mr.  Spurgeon.  Both  as  young  men,  were  full  of 
self-depreciation,  but  both  were  clothed  with  divine 
power,  and  both  performed  faithfully  the  work  com- 
mitted to  them  by  the  Lord.  Both,  too,  gave  God 
all  the  glory  of  their  achievements.  But  the  great 
preacher  of  the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle  has  exceeded 
the  son  of  the  Abi-ezrite,  alike  as  to  the  quality  of 
his  work,  the  wide  extent  of  his  influence,  and  the 
duration  of  the  power  he  has  wielded.     The  words 


304  Life  of  Pastor  C.  H.  Sinirgeon. 

addressed  to  the  young  Hebrew,  by  which  he  was 
clothed  as  with  a  divine  panoply,  apply  with  a  thou- 
sand-fold emphasis  to  the  preacher  who,  when  little 
more  than  a  boy,  began  his  wonderful  career :  "  And 
the  angel  of  the  Lord  appeared  unto  him,  and  said 
unto  him,  The  Lord  is  with  thee,  thou  miohtv  man 
of  valor.  .  .  .  And  the  Lord  looked  upon  him 
and  said.  Go  in  this  thy  might  .  .  .  have  not 
1  sent  thee  ? "  (Judges  vi.  12,  14.)  By  no  other 
means  could  Mr.  Spurgeon  have  accomplished  what 
he  has  done  ;  and  no  man  on  earth  would  exceed  him 
in  the  depth,  and  fervor,  and  profound  sincerity  and 
thankfulness  of  the  ascription  :  "  To  God  he  all  the 
glory  r' 

•*  ©lorg  be  to  tf)f  iFatl^er,  anti  to  tl)c  .Siin,  anti  to  tl)e  f^olg 
#l}OSt ; 
^0   it  iiias   \\\  ti)c  beginning,  is  noto,  anti  eber  0l}all  i)£, 
iDorlli  initijoiit  mti.     ^men."  ^ 


i  This  heantiful  ascription  to  the  Triune  God,  known  as  "  The  Lesser 
Doxology,"  and  of  which  neai'ly  all  modern  doxologies  are  imitations, 
has  come  down  to  us  from  a  period  soon  after  the  time  of  the  apostles. 
It  is  a  useful  and  potent  testimony  to  the  distinct  personality  and  unity 
of  the  Tliree-(  )ne  Jehovah,  and  was  especially  useful  when  these 
truths  were  so  fiercely  assailed  by  Arius  and  others,  in  the  times  of 
the  earlv  Fathers. 


CHAPTER   XXV. 

MR.  spurgeon's  translation. 


"  Mr.  Spurgeox  fell  asleep  in  Jesus 
at  11.5  P.M." 


So  rau  the  notice  posted  at  the  eud  of  the  bulletins  on  the  door 
of  the  Hotel  Beau  Rivage,  Mentone,  1st  February,  1892. 


"  He  was  not ;  for  God  took  him."  —  Gen.  v.  24. 
"  Then  I  have  conquered ;  then  at  last 
My  course  is  run,  good-night ! 
I  am  well  pleased  that  it  is  past ; 
A  thousand  times  good-night ! 

Dr.  G.  W.  Sacer:    Wolfenbilttel,  1635-1699. 

Yes,  the  end  has  come.  The  faithful  warrior  is 
crowned.  There  is  sadness  on  earth,  for  "  a  prince 
and  a  great  man  in  Israel  has  fallen ; "  but  there  is 
also  joy  ;  and  joy  there  should  be,  for  all  his  weari- 
ness and  sufferings  are  past.  "  The  Lord  gave,  and 
the  Lord  hath  taken  away ;  blessed  be  the  name  of 
the  Lord."  Li  such  words  the  redeemed  spirit  would 
speak  to  us,  if  only  we  could  hear;  and  yet,  hear 
we  can  and  do.     In  the  stillness   of  that   contem- 

20 


306  Life  ayid  Labors  of 

plation,  in  which  we  follow  him  to  the  world  of  light 
and  joy  whither  he  is  gone,  may  we  not  hear  him  say- 
to  us :  — 

"  The  weakness  ouce  I  sank  beneath, 

I  never  more  shall  know. 
Lay  on  niv  coffin  many  a  palm, 

Victors  empalmed  are  seen ; 
And  lo !  my  soul  attains  through  death 

The  crown  of  evergreen, 
That  blooms  in  fadeless  groves  of  heaven ; 

And  this  great  victor's  crown, 
That  mighty  Sou  of  God  hath  given, 

Who  for  my  sake  came  down. 
*T  was  but  a  while  that  I  was  sent 
*    To  dwell  among  you  here  ; 
Now  God  resumes  what  He  hath  lent, 

Oh,  grieve  not  o'er  my  bier ; 
But  say,  't  was  given  at  His  command 

Who  takes  it ;  He  is  just ; 
Our  life  and  death  are  in  His  hand, 

Whom  all  His  servants  trust." 

We  should,  therefore,  rejoice  for  all  that  he  was 
enabled  to  do  for  God  while  here  —  and  what  pen  but 
an  angel's  can  ever  record  it?  —  and  for  all  that  to 
which  he  has  attained  through  sovereign  grace,  —  that 
grace  he  so  faithfully  declared,  that  grace  in  which 
his  very  soul  delighted,  and  which  he  lived  to  extol. 
How  he  delighted  to  dwell  upon  the  theme  in  his 
ministry,  the  world  knows  ;  and  how  he  used  to 
repeat  and  sing  his  favorite  hymn  — 

"  Grace,  't  is  a  charming  sound  "  — 

to  his  favorite  tune  (Cranbrook),  and  in  the  exultant 
strains  of  John  Kent,  to  declare,  — 


Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeoji.  307 

"  We  '11  sing  the  same  while  life  shall  last, 
And  when,  at  th'  archangel's  blast, 

Our  sleeping  dust  shall  rise. 
Then,  in  a  song  I'orever  new, 
The  glorious  theme  we  "11  still  pursue 
Throughout  the  azure  skies." 

Our  Oivn  Hj/mn  Book. 

But  the  believer  has  not  to  wait  for  the  resurrection 
to  take  up  in  sweeter  strains  the  songs  of  earth. 
*' The  song  of  Moses,  the  servant  of  God,  and  the 
song  of  the  Lamb  "  is  hymned  by  all  "  the  spirits  of 
the  just  made  perfect"  as  they  pass  from  the  holy 
to  the  holiest,  and  take  their  place  before  the  throne 
as  the  "  redeemed  from  among  men." 

Is  there  any  shadow  of  disappointment  anywhere 
that  there  was  no  utterance  in  his  last  moments 
attesting  with  his  dying  voice  the  witness  of  his 
whole  life  ?  There  could  not  be,  from  tlie  nature  of 
the  disease  which  was  God's  messenger  to  call  him 
hence ;  and  there  needed  not  to  be.  God,  liberal  as 
He  is  with  His  gifts,  does  not  bestow  them  uselessly. 
Such  a  ministry,  and  such  a  life,  in  all  respects  its 
counterpart  and  its  commendation,  was  a  testimony 
which,  if  men  will  not  believe  it  and  regard  it  and 
lay  it  to  heart,  neither  will  they  be  persuaded  by  any 
words  from  the  death-chamber,  nor  even  could  he 
arise  from  the  dead. 

And  yet  some  words  from  the  short  address  given 
by  Mr.  Spurgeon  at  Mentone,  on  the  last  evening  of 
1891,  may  be  taken  as  his  dying  testimony  :  — 


308  Life  and  Labors  of 

" '  This  is  a  faithful  saying,  and  worthy  of  all 
acceptation,  that  Christ  Jesus  came  into  the  world 
to  save  sinners.'  On  that  blessed  fact  I  rest  my  soul. 
Though  I  have  preached  Christ  crucified  for  more 
than  forty  years,  and  have  led  many  to  my  Master's 
feet,  I  have  at  this  moment  no  ray  of  hope  but  that 
which  comes  from  what  my  Lord  Jesus  has  done  for 
guilty  men." 

"  Behold  Him  there  !  the  bleeding  Lamb  ! 
My  perfect,  spotless  Righteousness, 
The  great  unchangeable,  '  I  AM,' 
The  King  of  glory  and  of  grace." 

Sword  and  Trowel,  February,  1892. 

Well,  therefore,  was  the  following  text  of  Holy 
Scripture  inscribed  on  liis  coffin,  "  I  have  fought 
a  good  fight,  I  have  finished  my  course,  I  have  kept 
the  faith "  (2  Tim.  iv.  7).  He  did  not  apply  the 
words  to  himself ;  but  he  might  truly  have  done  so. 

Before  this  concluding  chapter,  in  a  book  delayed 
in  publication  by  his  long  illness,  reaches  the  public 
eye,  the  memorial  and  funeral  services  will  have 
come  to  an  end,  and  the  first  pang  of  sorrow  for 
the  loss  which  all  his  myriad  friends  have  sustained 
will  have  been  somewhat  assuaged  ;  and  as  we 
write,  we  pray  that  the  God  of  all  consolation 
may  comfort  their  hearts  with  the  contemplation  of 
*'  the  joy  of  the  Lord  "  into  which  he  has  entered, 
and  with  the  happy  expectation  and  joyous  hope  of 
a  blessed  reunion,  where  there  will  be  a  knitting  up 
of  all  severed  friendships,  and  a  perfect  accord  of  all 


Pastor   C.  H.  Spurgeon.  309 

the  servants  of  God,  where  "  the  Lord  God  giveth 
them  light :  and  they  shall  reign  for  ever  and  ever." 

To  the  bereaved  widow,  beloved  by  all  who  know 
her,  and  by  multitudes  besides,  heartfelt  sympathy 
goes  forth,  and  will  go  forth,  that,  weakened  as  she 
is  by  long  and  painful  bodily  affliction,  bowed  with 
grief  at  her  loss,  and  called,  as  she  will  be,  to  exer- 
cise important  functions  in  connection  with  her 
husband's  publications  and  papers,  she  may  prove 
the  truth  of  the  promise,  "  As  thy  days,  so  shall  thy 
strength  be."  And  with  one  voice,  the  one  Church 
throughout  the  world  will  pray,  not  for  her  alone, 
but  for  the  deacons,  elders,  and  members  of  the 
Tabernacle  Church,  that  needed  wisdom  and  grace 
may  be  given,  that  in  the  future,  as  in  the  past,  the 
testimony  of  the  Lord  may  be  according  to  "  the 
simplicity  that  is  in  Christ,"  and  that  the  "  candle  of 
the  Lord  "  may  continue  to  burn  with  undiminished 
brightness  and  unfading  lustre. 

The  night  of  31st  January,  1892,  will  be  ''  a  night 
to  be  much  remembered,"  as  that  in  which  the 
greatest  preacher  of  his  age  passed  to  his  rest  and 
reward.  May  it  prove  an  eventful  night  to  many 
who  have  hitherto  slighted,  neglected,  or  refused 
the  "  great  salvation "  he  proclaimed  I  May  the 
earnest  pleadings  of  him  whose  mortal  lips  are  now 
silent  in  the  grave  come  back  to  them  with  a 
thousandfold  energy  and  emphasis,  and  with  the 
power  of  the  Holy  Spirit ;  that,  as  Samson  slew  more 


310  Life  of  Pastor   C.  H.  Spur g eon. 

at  his  deatli  than  in  his  life,  so  now  the  blessinsr 
resting  on  the  testimony  of  the  lips  sealed  in  silence 
may  be  manifold  more  abundant  than  on  the  livino; 
utterances  of  the  great  soul-winner  ! 

One  closing  word  to  all  who  bear  the  Christian 
name,  as  coming  from  the  silent  grave  of  the  dear 
and  beloved  departed  one,  whose  heart  embraced  all 
believers,  and  tlirilled  with  love  for  all  mankind  : 

Wake,  awake,  for  night  is  flying, 

The  watchmen  on  the  heights  are  crying 

Awake,  Jerusalem,  at  last  ! 
Mitlniuht  hears  tlie  welcome  A'oices, 
And  at  the  thrilling  cry  rejoices. 

Come  fortli,  ye  virgins,  night  is  past ! 
The  bridegroom  comes,  awake, 
Your  lamps  in  gladness  take  ; 
Hallelujah! 
And  for  his  marriage  feast  prepare, 
For  ye  must  go  to  meet  Him  tliere!  " 

Dr.  Philip  Xicolai,  1556-1601. 


INDEX. 


INDEX. 


"A.  B.,"  1G9,  170. 
Almshouses,  2iiQ,  267. 
Alva,  Duke  of;  his  boast,  1. 
Ancestiy,  Mr.  Spuriijeon's,  1. 
Anj^us,  Dr.  Joseph,  8^}. 
Armitage,  Dr.,  of  New  York,  102. 
Association,  The  Colportage,  2(J8. 
"Australasian,"  242. 

Baptists,    General,    272  ;    Baptists, 

Particular,    272;     Baptist    Union, 

272 
"Baptismal  Regeneration,"  272. 
Barrow,  Samuel,  Esq.,  178. 
Bernhard,  Mr.  and  Mrs.,  297. 
"Bonnie  Moody,"  207. 
"  Brazen  Serpent,"  anecdote  of,  243, 

244. 
Brock,  Rev.  W.,  D.D.,  117. 
Brown,    Rev.    Ilugh    Stowell,    127, 

171,  180. 
Brown,   Rev. '  Archibald,    133,    223- 

225. 
Burn  ham,  Mr.,  152. 
Burton,  Rev.  Mr.  (the  late),  133. 

Calvinism,  the  other  side  of,  36. 

Cantlow,  Rev.  W.  W.,  42;  Memo- 
rial of,  46. 

Carter,  Mr.  E.  A.,  162. 

Centenarv  Memorial,  269. 

"  Our  Children,"  255,  256. 

Charlesworth,  Rev.  V.  J.,  186,  187; 
Portrait,  187. 

Chown,  Rev.  J.  P.,  171,  236. 

Church,  Metropolitan  Tabernacle,  71. 

Church  Records,  96,  109,  112,  113. 

Church,  Unity  of  the  One,  in  Praver, 
285 

Churcher,  T.  Gillard,  161. 

College,  The  Pastors',  129-150  ;  first 
student,  his  letters,  and  Mr.  Spur- 
geon's  replies,  129-131 ;  College 
Buildings,    133;    Why   found    an- 


other college  ?  Mr.  Spurgeon's 
reply,  134,  135;  Exigencies,  how 
met,  136,  137;  Providential  inter- 
position, 136 ;  Other  cases,  137, 
138;  "Ministers  and  Ministers," 
141;  Evening  classes,  141;  (Quality 
of  the  men  sent  out,  142 ;  The 
gospel  t"e/'^*«s  "gymnastics  in  the 
Church."  142,  143;  The  utility  of 
the  institution  decided  by  a  greater 
than  man,  143;  Where  the  men  are 
settled,  145;  Conference  of  Pas- 
tors' College  and  Pastors'  Col- 
lege Evangelical  Association,  148; 
"  The  Greatest  Fight  in  the  World," 
149 ;  Letters  and  Messages,  150 ; 
Communion  Service,  150;  Parting 
hymn,  150;  Picking  angels'  pock- 
ets, anecdote,  56. 

Elvin,  Rev.  Cornelius,  54;  his  pro- 
phecy and  wish,  55. 

Errors  against  which  Mr.  Spurgeon 
has  chiefly  testified,  273. 

Evangel icaf  Alliance,  The  Council  of, 
273 ;  Faithful  Testimony,  274. 

Evangelists,  The  Society  of,  151 ;  Re- 
port 1890-91,  154-158. 

France.  Baptist  Ministers  of,  226. 

Fullerton,  Mr.  W.  Y.,  152;  Portrait, 
153. 

Giles,  Rev.  John,  of  Evthorne,  83, 
151. 

Gill,  Dr.,  75;  Birth,  76;  Call  to 
Horselydown,  76  ;  Anecdote  — 
Length  of  Bands,  76 ;  Portrait, 
77  ;  Dying  Testimony,  78,  79; 
Yulpit,  79;  Builds  Carter  Lane 
Chapel,  81;  Cut  of  Carter  Lane 
Chapel,  80. 

Gladstone,  W.  E.,  M.  P.,  Letter,  288. 

"Glory  be  to  the  Father,"  &c.,  304. 

Gough,  John  B.,  182-186. 


314 


Index. 


Gould,  Mr.,  of  Loughton,  62,  63. 
"  Greville  Memoirs,"  record  concern- 
ing Mr.  Spiirgeon,  101,  102. 

"Habitans  in  Sicco,"  Ins  letter  to 
the  '•  Times,"  98-101. 

Haddon  Hall,  269. 

Hall,  Rev.  Newman,  LL.B.,  235. 

Harmer,  Mr.,  152. 

Harr.dd,  Mr.  J.  W.,  207,  227. 

Harrison,  ]\Ir,,  152. 

Havelock-Allen,  Sir  Henry,  119. 

"H.  E.  S.,"  178. 

Helensburgh  House,  275  ;  Rural  Re- 
treat at,  277:  The  Lawn,  278. 

Higgs,  Mr.  William,  169. 

Hillyard,  Mrs.,  169. 

Hotel  Beau  Rivage,  Mentone,  298. 

IsLEHAM  Ferry,  43. 

Jubilee  Address,  bv  the  late  Mr. 
B.  W.  Carr,  211-215. 

Keach,  Rev.  Benjamin,  72;  In  the 
Pillor}',  73;  Imprisoned,  73;  His 
Journey  to  London,  74;  Robbed. 
74 ;  Succeeds  Mr.  Rider,  74 ; 
Works,  75;    Death,  75. 

Kevs.  Mr.  J.  L  ,  240. 

Kidd,  Dr.  Joseph,  284. 

"L'EcHO  de  la  V^rite,"  246. 

"Lesser  Doxology,"  304  (note). 

Liverpool  House,  180. 

Livingstone,  Dr.,  anecdote  of,  102; 
Long  illness,  partial  list  of  callers, 
messages,  telegrams,  cablegrams, 
&c.,  287,  288. 

Low,  Mr.  -James,  65. 

McArthur,  Sir  William,  M.  P.,  235. 

Miller,  Dr.  R.  M.,  284. 

Mission,  Golden  Lane,  225. 

Missionary  Association,  Pastors'  Col- 
lege, 158-162. 

Moody's,  Mr.  D.  L.,  address,  207- 
210;  225. 

Moore,  Mr.  George,  114,  119,  167. 

Music  Hall,  Surrey  Gardens,  94,  95; 
Interior  View,  99 ;  Mr.  Spurgeon 
leaves  the  Surre}'  Gardens  Music 
Hall,  his  reasons,  104;  Sunda}^ 
amusement,  the  Hall  Concert,  104. 

New  Park  Street  Church,  71-84. 


Olxey,   Mr.,    62,   63;    Olney,   Mr. 

Thomas  and  Son.-,  169. 
Olney,  Mr.  T.  H.,  235. 
Olney,  Mr.  U  illiam,  Jun.,  226. 
Orsman,  Mr.  W.  J.  225. 

Palmer,  Mr.  George,  M.P.,  379. 
Passmore  and  Alabaster,  178. 
Passmore,  Mr.  Josepli,  65,  297. 
Patrick,  N.  Hardingham.  102. 
Peto,  Sir  Samuel  Morton,  110. 
Pioneer  Mission  Work,  162,  163. 
"Prayer  Without  Ceasing,"  285. 

RiCKETT,  W.  R.,  Esq.,  178. 

Reading  House,  179. 

Rider,  Rev.  William,  71. 

Rippoii,  Dr.,  80;  Call  to  Carter  Lane, 
80  ;  Portrait,  81 ;  Builds  New  Park 
Street,  82;  Fitty  years"  prosperity, 
80,  82;  Authorship,  selection,  reg- 
ister, 82;  Mr.  Spurgeon's  estimate 
of  liim.  82;  Many  ministers  sent 
out,  82. 

Rogers,  Rev.  George,  123-127,  132; 
Portrait,  135 ;  Mr.  Spurgeon's  esti- 
mate of  him,  136. 

Spurgeon,  Charles  Haddon,  birth, 
22;  Birthplace,  23;  Aunt  (Ann), 
24;  Stays  at  Staml)ourne,  24; 
Precocity,  24;  School  at  Colches- 
ter, 25;  Rev.  R.  KuilTs  prophecy, 
25;  Early  characteristics,  32;  Edu- 
cation and  training,  33;  Con- 
version, 34;  "Look,  look!"  36; 
Preaches  at  Colchester,  1864,  37; 
Letter  to  an  uncle,  37 ;  Tempted  to 
infidelity,  40 ;  Convictions  as  to 
baptism,  41;  Baptism,  41;  Isleham 
Ferry,  43;  Why  baptized,  47;  Ad- 
di'esses  Sunday-school  at  New- 
market, 48;  Competes  for  a  prize, 
49;  Removes  to  Cambridge,  49; 
Joins  Lay  Preachers'  Association, 
50;  First  sermon,  51;  Teversham, 
52,  53;  Waterbeach,  52;  Chapel  at 
Waterbeach,  55;  Proposed  college 
training,  57 ;  Curious  misadven- 
ture, or,  rather,  providence,  58 ; 
Singular  text  applied,  59 ;  Decision, 
60;  Characteristic  anecdote,  60; 
Preaches  at  Parker's  Piece  in  1870, 
61;  Call  to  London,  62;  First  Sun- 
day in  London,  64;  Further  visits, 


Index. 


315 


65;  Probationary  call,  65;  Mr. 
Spurgeon's  reply,  65-67;  Charges 
of  newspaper  writers  and  others, 
67;  Astounding  popularity,  68; 
Call  to  the  pastorate,  68;  Reply,  69; 
Installed  as  pastor,  70;  Portrait, 
87 ;  Early  years  of  pastorate,  85 ; 
Increasing  popularit}'^,  86;  Press 
criticisms,  86,  87  :  Anecdote  re  boy 
preachers,  86;  Mr.  Hare's  crit- 
icisms, 88;  Anecdote  of  cholera 
visitation  in  1854,  88,  89;  Quaker 
criticism,  90;  Enlargement  of  New 
Park  Street,  91 ;  Preaches  in  Ex- 
eter Hall,  91;  '"Brimstone  and 
Treacle,"  91,  92  ;  "  Catch-' em- 
Alive-0!"  92,  93;  Marriage,  93; 
Preaches  in  the  Surrey  Music  Hall, 
94;  Catastrophe,  94;  Effects  on 
Mr.  Spurgeon,  96;  Mr.  Spurgeon 
at  Portsmouth,  96:  Preaches  in 
Crystal  Palace,  101;  Invited  to 
United  States,  103;  Preaches  be- 
fore the  Dutch  Court,  104  ;  Inter- 
view Avith  the  Queen  of  Holland, 
104;  Preaches  in  the  Cathedral  at 
Geneva,  104  ;  Re-occupies  Exeter 
Hall,  105;  Remarks  on  leaving 
Exeter  Hall  for  tiie  Tabernacle, 
105;  First  sermon  in  the  Taberna- 
cle, 114-117;  Various  agencies  in 
connection  with  Mr.  Spurgeon  and 
his  church,  266. 

Spurgeon,  Mr,  as  a  hymn-writer, 
257-265;  His  favorite  hvnin  tind 
tune,  306-307. 

Spurgeon's,  Mr.,  Jubilee,  202-207, 
217,  221,  222,  227;  "  Massa  Spur- 
geon," 225;  Prayer,  226,227;  Sec- 
ond meeting,  227-238. 

Spurgeon,  Mr.,  as  a  preacher  and 
author,  239  ;  "  Treasury  of  David," 
240,  241;  Sermons,  242;  Methodist 
minister,  246 ;  Letters  from  Florida, 
&c.,  247-249;  Anecdote  of  "  Salva- 
tion to  the  Uttermost,"  249,  250; 
Accidents  not  punishments,  No. 
408,  250 ;  A  minister  in  Scotland, 
251;  A  Scotch  friend,  252;  Trans- 
lations, Dutch,  &c.,  252,  253;  A 
Nestorian  pastor,  253,  254  ;  His  last 
address  in  public,  307-308. 

Spurgeon  at  home,  276,  282;  his 
study,  282;  his  long  illness,  28-3- 
296;'  his  postscript  to  Mr.  Glad- 
stone, facsimile  of  first  letter,  289, 


290;  Mee's,  Mr.,  verses,  293,  294; 
Hallelujah !  294 ;  "  All  our  Times." 
&c.,  296;  AtMentone,  297-302  ;  His 
death  at  Mentone,  and  remarks 
thereupon,  305-310;  The  inscription 
on  his  coffin,  308. 

Spurgeon's,  Mrs.,  Book  Fund,  188; 
Portrait,  189;  Lemon-plant,  190, 
191;  Books  distributed  up  to  1875, 
192;  Letters  of  Recipients,  193; 
Letter  to  Editor  of  "  The  Sword  and 
the  Trowel,"  194;  Appeal  by  M>-. 
Spurgeon,  195;  Providentialinter- 
position,  195;  "Ten  Years  of  My 
Life  in  the  Service  of  the  Book 
Fund,"  197;  Report  for  1890,  197; 
A  charming  parable,  198;  Letters 
from  clerical  recipients,  199,  200; 
Mrs.  Spurgeon's  Christian  spirit, 
201 ;  Reply  to  Mr.  Gladstone,  289 ; 
Consolatory  Avords  addressed  to, 
309. 

Spurgeon,  Rev.  James,  enters  Hox- 
ton  Academy,  4  ;  Settles  at  Clare, 
4;  Moves  to  Stambourne,  4;  Por- 
trait, 5 ;  Peaceable  Pastorate,  6 ; 
The  oak  tree,  6;  Dream,  7;  Resist- 
ing Satan,  8;  Victory,  8;  "  Crazv 
man,"  10;  Anecdotes,  10,  11,  12"'; 
•Jubilee.  14;  Manse  and  meeting- 
house, 13 ;  Mrs.  James  Spurgeon, 
16 ;  Decease,  17 ;  Tablet,  18. 

Spurgeon,  Rev.  John,  19 ;  Mrs.  John, 
19 ;  Prayer  exceeded,  20 ;  Portraits, 
21,  127,' 215,  217. 

Spurgeon,  Rev.  J.  Archer,  127;  An 
efficient  helper  in  college  work, 
143;  Portrait,  144,  217-221,  243. 

Spurgeon,  Rev.  Charles,  of  Green- 
wich, 146  ;  Portrait,  147,  222. 

Spurgeon,  Rev.  Thomas,  Work  in 
the  Colonies,  145;  Portrait,  147, 
242,  243. 

Spurgeon,  Mr.  Job,  218. 

Steane,  Rev.  Edward,  D.D.,  123, 128. 

Stinton,  Rev.  Benjamin,  75  ;  Origi- 
nates Protestant  Dissenters'  Char- 
ity Schools,  75 ;  Particular  Baptist 
F'und,  75. 

Smith,  Rev.  James,  83. 

Surrey  Gardens  Memorial  Hall,  106, 
107;  108. 

Shaftesbury,  Earl  of,  225-227,  234. 

Smith,  Mr.  Manton,  152  ;  Portrait, 
153. 

Stockwell  Orphanage,   165 ;    Origin, 


316 


Index, 


165:  Site,  166;  Trustees,  165; 
Scheme,  166  ;  View  of,  164 ;  Sil- 
ver-Wedding House,  168 ;  Other 
houses,  169 ;  Stones  laid,  169 ; 
Pastors'-College  House,  170  ;  Mrs. 
Spurgeon  lays  first  stone,  170; 
"Double-barrelled  appetites,"  171; 
Friends  at  Eeading,  —  munificent 
help,  172;  Mottoes,  173;  Entrance 
to  Stockwell  Orphanage,  172;  Bird- 
motto,  173  ;  Boys'  side.  174;  Girls' 
Orphanage,  176  ;  "•  The  Haw- 
thorns," 175 ;  The  Girls'  side,  176 ; 
Another  legacy,  177 ;  Large  con- 
tributors, 178  ;  The  Infirmary,  178  ; 
Scene  in  Bo3's'  Pla^'-hall,'  ISO ; 
Principles  of  admission,  181 ;  Mr. 
Gough's  account  of  a  visit.  182- 
186 ;  Mr.  Spurgeon's  fatherliness, 
184-186;  The  head-master,  186, 
187. 

"Suke3^"  232. 

Surrey  Gardens  Memorial  Hall,  269. 

Taberxacle,  Metropolitan,  Church, 
71 ;  Meeting  to  consider  steps  for 
the  erection  of  a  new  Home  for 
the  Church,  109. 


Tabernacle  Almshouse  School,  266.  ; 

Tabernacle,  Metropolitan,  Schools, 
270. 

Tabernacle,  The  Metropolitan,  109  ; 
Gathering  of  funds,  110;  "Plod- 
ding on,"  110  ;  Laying  of  first 
stone,  110 ;  Remarkable  interposi- 
tions of  Providence,  110  ;  Outside 
VieAV,  111 ;  Dimensions,  113,114; 
Accommodation,  114;  Mr.  Spur- 
geon  preaching  in  Tabernacle,  114; 
Opening  of,  114-128;  Total  cost, 
128. 

Tabernacle,  Metropolitan,  Evangel- 
ists' Association  and  County  Mis- 
sion, 270. 

"Times,  The,"  newspaper,  98. 

Todd,  R.  J.  W.,  D.D.,  234. 

Tucker,  Rev.  Francis,  B.A.,  119-123. 


Walters,  Rev.  William,  called  to 

New  Park  Street,  84. 
Westwood,   Entrance   to,    279;    The 

Arbor,  280  ;   Study,  282. 
Wilberforce.  Canon  Basil,  234. 
Williams,  Rev.  W.,  235. 
Winslow,  73,  74. 


HOME  WORSHIP  AND  USE  OF  THE  BIBLE. 

HOME   WORSHIP 

AND 

THE  DSE  OF  THE  BIBLE  IN  THE  HOME. 

A  Practical  Method  of  Using  Scripture  and  Explanation 

FOR 

Systematic  Study  of  the   Bible  by  Subjects, 

FOR 

Readings  Suited  to  Every  Special  Need, 

AND    FOK 

Ready   Reference. 
BY 

Rev.  J.  P.THOMPSON,  D.D.,  and  Rev.  C.  H.  SPURGEON. 

EDITED    BY 

Rev.  JAMES  H.  TAYLOR,  D.D. 

WITH    SPECIAL   CHAPTERS    BY 

BISHOP  SIMPSON.  REV.  WM.  M.  TAYLOR,  D.D. 

REV.  JOHN  HALL,  D.D.      REV.  GEORGE  D.  BOARDMAN,  D.D. 

Illustrated  with  Steel  Engravi?tgs  aiid  Alaps. 

'  In  placing  the  present  work  before  the  public,  special  mention 
should  be  made  of  the  superior  facilities  here  offered  for  making  THE 
BIBLE  A  WORKING  POWER  IN  THE  HOME.  Combining 
Scripture  and  familiar  exposition  in  attractive  form  for  the  reading  and 
study  of  the  Bible  by  subjects,  it  places  the  whole  at  instant  comjnand  by 
a  new  method  of  classification  and  indexing. 

The  Biblical  explanations  represent  an  important  part  of  the  life 
studies  of  its  distinguished  authors,  and  indicate  to  some  extent  the 
character  and  magnitude  of  the  work.  Omitting  the  dry  details  of  com= 
ment  which  have  no  spiritual  significance,  great  prominence  is  given  to 
the  helpful  lessons  which  are  so  full  of  inspiration  to  u  better  life.  The 
work  commends  itself  as  furnishing  an  entirely  practical  method,  by 
which  families,  as  they  gather  at  their  ovm  firesides,  may  accomplish 
a  thorough  course  of  Bible  study,  with  some  central  subject  of  thought 
made  prominent  for  each  day.  The  means  are  thus  at  hand  for  renewing, 
in  more  effective  form,  the  grand  old  custom,  so  honored  and  blessed  of 
God  in  days  past,  of  religious  education  in  the  home.  These  short,  at- 
tractive readings — requiring  but  a  very  short  time  for  each — are  admir- 
ably adapted  to  the  few  minutes  which  every  Christian  family  has  already' 
set  apart  for  worship. 

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HOME  WORSHIP  AND  USE  OF  THE  BIBLE. 


THE  BOOK  IN  ACTUAL  USE. 


BISHOP  SIMPSON. 

(M.  E.  Church.) 

Rev.  R.  S.  STORRS,  D.D. 

(Cong.,  Brooklyn,  N. 

D.D. 


Y.) 


Rev.  HENRY  SCUDDER 

(Cong.,  Chicago.) 

BISHOP  BOWMAN. 

(5en.  Bishop  M.E.Ch.) 

Rev.  WAYLAND  HOYT,  D.D 

(Baptist,  Philadelphia,  Pa.) 

.RA  D.   SAN  KEY. 

(Evangelist.) 


Rev.  J.  H.  VINCENT,  D  D. 

^Pres.  Chautauqua  Lit.  and  Sci.  Circle.) 

Rev   GEO   DANA  BOARDMAN.  D.D. 

(Baptist,  Philadelphia,  Pa.) 


BISHOP  FOWLER. 

(M.  E.  Church.) 


Rev.  ROSS  C.  HOUGHTON.  D.D 

(M.  E.  Church.) 


(EXCERPTS.) 

**  It  is  superior  to  any  work  of  the 
same  character  which  I  have  ever 
seen." 

"  Family  Worship  will  be  en- 
riched and  made  more  delightful 
by  the  use  of  it.  " 

"  It  meets  a  real  want  and  does  it 
admirably" 

"  It  is  decidedly  the  best  book  of 
the  kind  I  have  seen.  It  must  be 
of  much  value  in  the  Sunday 
School  as  well  as  in  the  home." 
"After  a  good  deal  of  personal 
use  of  this  work,  I  give  it  my  un- 
qualified approval." 

"  I  am  delighted  with  the  work, 
and  cannot  conceive  of  anything 
more  complete  and  appropriate. 
God  speed  the  good  book  on  its 
mission  of  light  and  love." 

"  I  think  this  an  i7ivaluable  home 
manual." 

' '  I  am  thoroughly  delighted  with 
this  work.  It  is  rounded  in  con- 
ception and  admirable  in  execu- 
tion ;  a  strong  helper  towards  the 
true  eternal  home." 

"  This  thoughtful,  spiritual,  script- 
aral  work  must  tone  up  life  on 
every  side.  It  is  a  remarkable  col- 
lection of  spiritual  stimulants  and 
intellectual  incitements." 
' '  I  have  used  this  work  in  my  fam- 
ily for  some  time,  and  cheerfully 
give  it  my  unqualified  approval. 
It  helps  to  a  systematic  study  ol 
the  Bible  There  is  not  a  dull 
page  in  the  book,  and  I  deem  it 
especially  adapted  to  the  needs  of 
the  children  in  our  families.  I 
commend  it  most  heartily  and 
prayerfully  to  all 


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Rev.  P.  S.  HENSON,  D.D. 

(Baptist.) 

Rev.  E.  H.  STOKES,  D.D. 

(xM.  E.  Church.) 

Rev.  GEO.  S.  CHAMBERS,  D.D. 

(Pres.) 

Rev.  GEO.  F.  PENTECOST,  D.D. 


Rev.  JOS.  CUMMINGS,  D.D..  LL.D. 

(Pre?-.  Evanston  Univ. — M.  E.) 

Rev.  JAS.  B.  ANGELL,  D.D.,  Ll.D. 

(Pres.  University,  Mich.) 


H!e^'.  CHAS.  F.  DEEMS,  D.D. 

(Church  of  the  Strangers,  N.  Y.) 


Rsv.  E.  P.  GOODWIN,  D.D. 

^Cong.>  Chicago.) 


"  Scripture  is  here  made  to  inter- 
pret   Scripture,  and  the  notes  are 
very  clear,  concise  and  helpful." 
"  The   whole  book  is  aglow  with 
Divine  light." 

*'  The  great  number  of  devotional 
uses  of  which  this  book  is  capable 
shows  that  its  reverent  compilers 
and  authors  builded  even  more 
wisely  than  they  knew." 
"  I  have  used  this  work  in  my  own 
family,  and  all  the  household  liked 
it.  In  thousands  of  families  it 
must  be  of  unspeakable  value  and 
helpfulness." 

"It  is  a  work  peculiarly  well 
adapted  to  secure  the  object  in 
view — the  best  that  has  come  under 
my  notiie." 

"It  IS  admirably  suited  to  increase 
the  interest  of  any  household  in 
the  daily  study  of  the  Scriptures 
and  in  family  devotions." 
"The  revival  most  needed  now  is 
the  revival  of  home  worship.  More 
than  all  the  sensational  evangelistic 
efforts  would  be  the  permanent  and 
growing  influence  of  the  church  in 
the   house." 

"  This  volume  is  aimed  at  securing 
for  God's  word  a  more  general,  be- 
cause a  more  intelligent  use.  The 
only  possible  method  of  searching 
the  Scriptures,  of  finding  out  what 
they  teach,  and  of  getting  the  light, 
cheer  and  heip  they  are  meant  to 
give,  is  the  topical  one,  taking  a 
given  truth  or  subject  and  finding 
what  the  word  of  God  teaches  as 
to  that." 


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Pnnceion  Theolog.cal  Sem.nary-Speer  L.braY 


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